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Mr. Chairman, Members of the Committee.
It is appropriate to note that this is my first appearance before this Committee with General Pete Pace in his new role as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Many of you have come to know General Pace and to appreciate his abilities. He understands that the decisions he helps to make have a profound impact on our men and women in uniform and their families. And he is doing a fine job for our country.
Also with us is the Chief of Staff of the Army, General Pete Schoomaker. Because so many of the key issues involve the Army, we thought it would be useful to have General Schoomaker here to join in responding to your questions.
This is the sixth consecutive year I've appeared before you to discuss the Department's budget. We've met during times of war, and at a time when war seemed unlikely. We've met during periods of national unity, and in the midst of great controversy and debate over the course recent wars have taken. In every instance, the American people expected us to put the defense of this nation before political or parochial concerns. We have tried to do just that in making the tough decisions that our troops merit and that history will remember.
We meet today -- again -- as a nation engaged in what will be a "long war" -- a conflict that has put our military on a path of near continuous change for the past five years. A conflict, which also is having the effect of transforming the way our forces fight and defend the nation.
Not long before Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7, 1941, the United States had a standing army of about 200,000, putting us somewhere below Romania among the world's militaries. Just a few years earlier, American soldiers had been training with wooden rifles. Almost starting from scratch, America began to field huge armies and stand up an armaments industry that turned out massive fleets of ships, aircraft, tanks and equipment of every kind.
After Pearl Harbor, there were many setbacks and false starts -- think of the losses at Kasserine Pass, the bloody landings at Tarawa and Anzio, and the frustrating inability of American tanks to be able to go one on one against German Panzers. Over the following several years, our nation would learn some tough lessons and marshal the forces necessary to eventually triumph over two fascist empires.
When our country was attacked again on September 11th, we found ourselves in another global conflict, though one that had been started years earlier by our enemies. Fortunately, the process of rethinking and reconfiguring our military for such an eventuality was already well under way. Within three months, the Taliban regime and its al Qaeda "guests" were routed in a landlocked country several thousand miles away. And within three years, our military had removed a dangerous and brutal regime from Iraq and helped to stand up a new democratically elected government that is now fighting terrorists instead of harboring them.
This would not have been possible without an historic change in the way our military is arranged and operates.
Consider that when I first assumed this post more than 30 years ago, America's military establishment was understandably organized, trained and equipped to deter the Soviet Union and to do battle against large armies, navies, and air forces.
When I returned to the Department in 2001, the Armed Forces -- though smaller -- were in many respects still pretty much organized the same way they were during the Cold War.
The President recognized this and charged the Department with making the changes necessary to adapt to the new circumstances and threats of an uncertain era -- an environment where the greatest threats were less likely to come from large armies, navies and air forces, but instead from the evil designs of terrorists and rogue nations.
The urgency of these changes were made all too plain 53 months ago on that mid-September morning, by 19 men carrying tourist visas, boarding passes, and box cutters.
And today, this enemy, though under constant pressure and on the defensive, still intends to bring its cult of murder and suicide to our shores, and our cities -- and to those of our closest allies as well.
This "long war" is the central security issue of our time. The ensuing campaigns in Iraq, Afghanistan and other theaters in the Global War on Terror have added new impetus and urgency to transformation efforts that were already underway in this Department.
This process of continuous change and adaptation is so critical because of the nature of the enemy we face, one that has left little doubt about its intentions.
Last month, Osama bin Laden warned of yet more attacks on America. He has said:
"Let every person … come forward to fight those Jews and Americans . . . their killing is from the most important duties and most pressing things."
His top lieutenant, Zawahiri, warned us last year:
"Oh, Americans, in New York and Washington and the losses you are having in Afghanistan and Iraq . . . are only the losses of the initial clashes."
The enemy cannot win any conventional battle, so they challenge us through nontraditional, or asymmetric means, using terror as their weapon of choice. Their goal is to break America's resolve through the deft use of propaganda and carefully plotted attacks that garner headlines.
They are willing to employ every means -- every lie, every atrocity, and every available technology and means of communication -- to achieve their aims. In a few short years they have become experts at manipulating the global media to both inspire and intimidate. They have media committees and handbooks that advise their operatives when and how to lie -- in particular to claim torture when captured -- in order to generate coverage and commentary that damages vigorous anti-terrorism efforts. They have multiple web sites that display videos of bombings and beheadings that are shown around the world.
Their priority is to force us to abandon Iraq before that country is ready to defend itself so they can turn it into a base of operation -- as was Afghanistan before 9/11.
In a letter written by Zawahiri, he spelled out their strategy:
"The first stage: expel the Americans from Iraq. The second stage: establish an Islamic authority. The third stage: extend the jihad."
And have no doubt: should these fanatics obtain the weapons of mass destruction they actively seek, the survival of our free way of life would be at risk.
The enemy would like to define this war as a conflict between Islam and the West, but it is not. It is, in fact, a war within the Muslim world between the overwhelming majority of moderates and a much smaller number of violent extremists. The vast majority of Muslims do not share the violent ideology of al-Qaeda. They have children and families they care about. They hope for a better future for themselves and their countries. They do not want the extremists to win. And many are opposing them at every opportunity.
We see this dynamic at work in Iraq. On December 15th it was the brave and decent people of Iraq -- Shia, Kurds, Sunnis and others -- who seized the headlines and captured the attention and admiration of the world. Some 12 million Iraqis -- about 70 percent of eligible voters -- and thousands of candidates came together in a remarkably peaceful and orderly election. The jihadists, Baathist holdouts and criminals who dominate the daily news from Iraq were unable to halt yet another important milestone in that country's remarkable transformation.
Consider that compared to the successful provisional elections held last January, nearly four million more Iraqis voted and there were about 80 percent fewer violent attacks. And Sunnis, who had previously boycotted the political process, participated in large numbers, encouraged by their leaders not to make the same mistake again. In the Sunni majority Anbar province, turnout rose from 2 percent in January to 86 percent of registered voters in December.
The marginalization of the terrorists on Election Day last December was due in large part to the growth in the size, confidence and capability of the Iraqi security forces -- increasing from some 120,000 to 220,000 over the course of the year. Already, some 30 U.S. military bases have either been returned to Iraqi control or closed altogether. The 8th Iraqi Army Division recently took over a battle space the size of Kentucky, the largest such area transferred to date. So far, this division has seized nearly 5,000 weapons, confiscated more than 1,000 pounds of explosives and detained more than 1,000 suspects.
Consider the progress from the enemy's perspective:
Because of the progress on the security, political and economic fronts, U.S. military commanders recommended, and the President has directed, that the United States reduce its combat strength in Iraq by about two brigades, from 17 to 15. At the same time, the U.S. military will be shifting more to a supporting role, as Iraqi forces take even more of a leading role in securing their own country.
However, as the President has stated, force level decisions will be condition based. They have been and will continue to be determined by an assessment of Iraq's progress on the political, economic, and security fronts.
They will include such factors as:
Shortly, the Department will provide to Congress a report, Measuring Stability and Security in Iraq, that will describe the progress being made in these areas in more detail.
It is true that violence, corruption and criminality continue to pose challenges in Iraq. Each has been a part of the fabric of that country for decades and they are unlikely to disappear overnight. But Iraq's liberation and the subsequent political progress have ignited what may turn out to be a momentous shift in the region. One prominent Lebanese politician -- and a periodic critic of the U.S. -- has called Iraq possibly the "start of a new Arab world" and has compared the progress there to the fall of the Berlin Wall.
The people of the United States have contributed and sacrificed a great deal helping to set Iraq on the path to democracy. Our finest young men and women in uniform launched on a mission of liberation and our most outstanding civilian and military leaders represent our nation there today. It is now up to the Iraqis to seize the opportunity and take more responsibility for their own security and their own affairs.
This means assembling a government that respects the interests of all the ethnic and religious groups in the country and, importantly, a competent team with a program to govern from the center, not from the edges.
A word on what has often been referred to as "nation building." The fact of the matter is that only the Iraqi people can build their nation. All that outsiders can do is help to set the conditions that will give them the opportunity to do so. That has been our goal over the past three years. But it cannot be an effort without end.
A large foreign presence in any country is unnatural. It is a bit like a broken bone -- an anomaly. When there is an anomaly, bony callus grows around the break and eventually remodeling occurs to allow the body to adjust to the abnormal condition. This is what can happen when well-intentioned foreigners arrive on the scene, look at problems, and say, "Let's go fix it for them," and then stay too long. It can cause reactions that are not intended, including dependency, or anger from a feeling of intrusiveness and occupation.
Our objective from the start has been not to create a dependency, but rather to encourage Iraqi independence and capacity by transitioning increasing responsibility to Iraqis -- over time -- to have them take charge of their security and governance of their country.
If America has the patience and the will to see this noble and necessary mission to completion -- and we must -- Iraq can emerge as a nation with a representative government, at peace with its neighbors, and one that can become an ally in the Global War on Terror.
This would be a truly amazing achievement -- one that members of our Armed Forces, their families, and future generations of Americans will be able to look back on, decades from now, with great pride.
In this "long war," the task ahead -- to continue to pursue the enemy, bolster our defenses, and enable our friends and allies to manage their own defense -- requires us to not only meet today's threats, but to plan for tomorrow's uncertainties.
At this time, for example, we are fighting a war against terrorist cells dispersed throughout the world. But we might one day find ourselves facing any of a number of other scenarios as well:
No nation, no matter how powerful, has the resources or capability to defend everywhere, at every time, against every conceivable type of attack. The only way to protect the American people, therefore, is to provide our military with as wide a range of options as possible -- to focus on developing a range of capabilities, rather than preparing to confront any one particular threat.
The way to keep one's balance in a time of war is to consider worst-case scenarios, develop a wide range of tactics, and then plan on being surprised.
The major initiatives that have been underway in the Department over the past five years have been undertaken with this in mind. And, they have been informed by operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other locations in the Global War on Terror.
In Iraq, the lessons learned process began on day one. An embedded team of observers at Central Command, along with strategists in the United States, analyzed successes and setbacks each day, with an eye toward the way we train troops, equip forces, and fight wars in the future -- everything from body armor to business practices. Consider one example in an area that has been of concern: up-armored Humvees. In 2001 the entire U.S. Army had 450 up-armored Humvees. Today, it has over 11,000.
The concept of adapting to confront a wider range of threats also informed recent changes to U.S. global posture. We surveyed where U.S. forces were stationed abroad and noted that they were more or less where they had been at the height of the Cold War. So we resolved to re-position them for diffuse global threats. Instead of keeping armored divisions garrisoned in Germany to protect against a Soviet invasion, for example, we are moving many troops to bases in the U.S. and establishing more flexible -- and less intrusive -- forward operating sites that can assist in moving our forces closer to potential future trouble spots.
The latest Base Realignment and Closure [BRAC] round -- the largest in the Department's history -- is another example. As with the global posture decisions, military and civilian experts made a thorough assessment of DoD's domestic base structure to determine how the Department might eliminate unnecessary duplication and bring the various Services closer together. This in turn should save the taxpayers tens of billions of dollars -- money that can be directed to fighting the war and taking care of the troops and their families.
And this approach -- providing more options and developing a wider range of capabilities -- has governed decisions made in developing both the President's budget and "the Quadrennial Defense Review," or QDR.
The QDR is a broad assessment of what the Department is doing to confront a wide range of threats and offers guideposts for the changes necessary in the decades ahead.
Military and civilian strategists have devoted thousands of hours to:
The QDR is not a budget document, but it has benefited from a change in legislation that allowed this report and the budget to be submitted at the same time. This permitted some "leading edge" investments suggested in the QDR to be included in the Fiscal Year 2007 budget, with additional changes to be reflected in next year's budget request.
At $439.3 billion, the President's Department of Defense budget for Fiscal Year 2007 represents a 7 percent increase from what was enacted last year, and continues the necessary growth begun in 2001. This is a great deal of money, though at about 3.7 percent of GDP, it represents a much smaller fraction of America's gross domestic product then when I entered Congress during the Kennedy Administration. As important as the numbers, are the choices we make and the priorities the President has set to fulfill his oath to protect this and future generations of Americans.
The word "transformation" has attracted a lot of attention, but in many ways it is more accurate to see this process of continuous analysis and change as a shift of emphasis, or weight, from the practices and assumptions of the past.
We have shifted, for example, from preparing to fight conventional wars -- which we are still prepared to do -- to a greater emphasis on fighting unconventional, or irregular, or asymmetric, wars against terrorist cells or enemy guerrillas. To that end, we are:
We have also shifted from simply de-conflicting the branches of the Armed Services -- essentially keeping them out of each others way on the battlefield -- to more fully integrating the Services in ways that complement and leverage each service's strengths.
Consider the opening phase of Operation Enduring Freedom -- where Special Forces linked up with CIA operatives and local fighters, called in air strikes from Navy jets and supply drops from Air Force cargo planes. This jointness continued and increased not just in Iraq, but in virtually everything the Department does -- whether training, logistics, and administration -- at home and abroad.
Not just our military, but our government, is shifting from reacting to crises -- as has been the case for much of our country's history -- to preventive action to keep problems from becoming crises, and crises from becoming conflicts. For example, the military has undertaken security and development missions in places such as the Horn of Africa to try to keep them from becoming a new haven for terrorist activity -- such as Afghanistan became during the 1990s.
One of the most important shifts underway is the role and importance of intelligence. The U.S. military has long excelled at engaging targets once they have been identified. In the future we must better ascertain where the enemy is going next, rather than where the enemy was -- to be able to "find" and "fix," as well as be able to "finish." This means upgrading U.S. intelligence capabilities -- both human and technological -- and more effectively linking intelligence to operations in real time in the field.
We are also shifting from the typically American impulse to try to do everything ourselves to helping partners and allies develop their own capacity to better govern and defend themselves. This is particularly important in a Global War on Terror where many of our nation's most dangerous enemies exist within the borders of countries with whom we are not at war. This shift is at the heart of the effort in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as smaller-scale train and equip missions in places like the Republic of Georgia and The Philippines.
It is abundantly clear that these kinds of complex and unconventional conflicts cannot be the task of any one country, or any one department. Within the Executive Branch, we are seeking ways to work more closely and seamlessly with partners in the Departments of State, Justice, Treasury, Homeland Security, and the Central Intelligence Agency. This means overcoming the legacy of industrial age practices and habits inherited from the Cold War. The Department will seek new, and more flexible authorities in budget, finance, acquisition, and personnel.
There are many other important shifts in our posture and thinking:
Another thing that has become clear in recent years is that raw numbers and mass do not necessarily equate with capability. Technological advances, including dramatic improvements in satellite communications, information technology, and precision weaponry have allowed our military to generate considerably more combat capability with the same or, in some cases, fewer numbers of troops and weapons systems. These advances in the ability to deliver precision firepower quickly and over great distances, have major implications for the way we think about deterrence and defense.
Consider that until recently three out of every four ships in the U.S. Navy were not deployable at any given moment because of long maintenance and training cycles -- the product of a peacetime culture and mindset.
Today, the percentage of the fleet routinely at sea has increased by more than 50 percent. The Navy can rapidly deploy six Carrier Strike Groups within 30 days and surge up to two additional Groups within 90 days.
By applying advanced research and development, innovative maintenance and training, and a variety of cost savings initiatives, Navy leaders have changed the way our fleet operates and deploys.
The Navy has increased its capacity and readiness in a variety of ways, including:
As a result, our ships and Sailors are better-equipped, better trained and more capable -- and are able to strike more targets with precision in far less time. As late as 1997, the airplanes aboard a single carrier could engage about 200 targets per day. In the opening phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom, this capability rose to over 600 targets per day.
We see a similar dynamic at work in the Air Force. Today, one B-2 bomber on one sortie can drop 80 different satellite guided bombs on 80 different target points. During Operation Desert Storm this would have required multiple aircraft on multiple missions. Despite the fact that the first Gulf War was widely associated with the video footage of "smart bombs" hitting their targets, over 90 percent of the munitions dropped in that war were conventional "dumb" bombs.
It is important to note, however, that the Air Force fleet is aging. It is not uncommon for pilots today to find themselves flying planes that are older then they are. In particular, the tanker fleet averages 46 years in service. An aging fleet means increased maintenance costs and flight restrictions. It is important that we recapitalize the fleet to retain America's air dominance and strategic lift capacity.
Our nation's oldest military service is undergoing a remarkable transformation -- from being a peacetime Army preparing for a major conventional war against another large military, to a consistently more agile and deployable force capable of taking on -- and sustaining -- a full range of missions around the globe.
These operations have placed demands on men and women wearing the Army uniform and their families. Despite having over 1 million total troops in the Army's active and reserve components -- and over 2.4 million in the military overall -- the deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq of a relatively small portion of that total -- currently less than 14 percent of the Army and less than 8 percent of the total military -- have produced stress on selected parts of the force.
The Army leadership under Secretary Fran Harvey and Army Chief of Staff General Pete Schoomaker took a hard look at this and identified that the real issue was not the total number of people in uniform, but rather the outdated way the force was organized. In particular, there needed to be an increase in the size of what's called "Operational Army" -- the available pool of soldiers and deployable units with the skills and capabilities required for today's missions.
The centerpiece of the Army reorganization plan is a shift away from a structure based on large divisions -- the "building block" of the Army since World War I -- into an active and reserve force configured into 70 more capable combat brigades and over 200 support brigades -- all fully manned and fully equipped. The "modular" brigade combat teams can deploy quickly with enough firepower, logistics and administrative support to operate on their own. They will be modernized with the Future Combat Systems -- a network of weapons and sensors. The result of these reforms is that a relatively small increase in the size of the Army has produced a dramatic increase -- about 30 percent -- in the amount of its deployable combat power.
With this restructuring, the Army should be able to maintain, when necessary, a force generation cycle of two years at home station for every year an active duty combat brigade is available to deploy abroad. For the Reserve Component, the deployment ratio should be five years at home to one year deployed if needed.
The Army is also in the process of realigning some 44,000 personnel spaces across the Active, Guard and Reserve elements to have more troops with the skill sets in highest demand. For example, Reserve and National Guard soldiers who are infantry, military police, civil affairs, and engineers have been in high demand during the Global War on Terror -- while those in field artillery, air defense and armor units less so. In addition, 12,000 soldiers formerly assigned to jobs -- mostly administrative and facilities support -- that could be performed by civilians -- are being brought into the operational part of the force.
These "rebalancing" steps are producing a 50 percent increase in infantry capabilities, with similar increases in military police, civil affairs, intelligence, and other critical skills. By enlarging the pool of available people with the needed skills and training, individual soldiers can expect to deploy and mobilize less often, for shorter periods of time, and with more notice and predictability.
Changes to the U.S. global force posture will also bring home 170,000 active duty troops and families home to bases in the United States. Therefore, instead of being rotated every two to three years to new postings, soldiers will be able to remain with units for up to seven years. In addition to building greater unit cohesion, this system should greatly reduce the strain on families from moving households and changing schools.
These changes are already resulting in a larger "Operational Army" -- by some 40,000 soldiers by the end of the next fiscal year -- with more cohesive and combat-ready formations, a more predictable career path for soldiers and their families, and more troops available with the skills needed to fight the challenges we can expect to face.
I want to comment on several issues that have been raised about the health of the United States Army.
First, some ask, what is the current state of the U.S. Army?
We have the most agile, most skilled, and most expeditionary Army in history. Those who use words like "broken army" are wrong.
General Schoomaker points out that he remembers what a "broken" Army looks like when he was a young officer. The Vietnam War had just ended, the All-Volunteer force was in its infancy, and though we had many fine soldiers and officers, the force was also troubled by multiple problems. The difference between that Army and the professional and motivated force we have today could not be more dramatic.
Many of the criticisms and dire predictions about the Army have come from people who may be well-intentioned, but who nonetheless are proceeding from outdated and inaccurate information.
Today's Army has demonstrated its capability not in garrisons, or in training exercises, or through statistical readiness formulas, but in the crucible of combat.
Think about the many rapid, complex and dangerous operations that the Army now undertakes on a regular basis in Iraq, Afghanistan and around the globe. They have made the extraordinary so routine that it is sometimes hard for people to notice just how much has changed, and just how good they have become.
A second question that is being asked is: Is the Army "cutting" the size of the Army Guard and Reserve?
The answer is no. The Army is not cutting the Army National Guard or Reserves. That rumor is false.
At the present time the Army National Guard is authorized by law to reach 350,000 soldiers. It is currently manned at approximately 333,000. The Army Reserve is authorized to reach 205,000 troops. It currently has 188,000.
The Army's plan is to fund the Guard and Reserve at their actual current troop strength. In addition, the Department is prepared to increase funding should the Army National Guard or the Army Reserves actually grow past their current levels. Each component will retain the same number of total brigades -- 106 for the Guard, 58 for the Reserves -- as they have today. And the reorganization underway will ultimately result in a force that is more agile, fully manned, fully equipped, and with capabilities that will greatly aid its homeland security missions.
A little background on what exactly is underway. In the past, the Army Reserve and National Guard served as a strategic reserve, to be called on once in a generation or a lifetime for a major war. As a result, they received relatively low priority for funding. Many units may have existed "on paper" but they were not fully manned and lacked sufficient training and equipment.
Today, the Army National Guard and the Army Reserve are shifting to an operational reserve, to be able to play a key role in homeland security, as required, as well as in support of the Global War on Terror.
America has come to rely much more on the Army's Reserve Components than before. In keeping with these new requirements, the Army, over the past two years, has initiated a series of changes -- and made additional proposals in this budget -- to the way its Reserve Components are arranged, manned and operated -- changes that arguably should have started a decade ago.
This shift has also been reflected in the Department's budget priorities. This administration has increased spending on the Guard and Reserves by over 50 percent since 2001, and the Army proposes spending $21 billion on new equipment and modernization for the Guard through Fiscal Year 2011.
Some changes have had a positive impact already, as demands put on the Guard and Reserve have actually decreased in recent months. Some 160,000 reserve component soldiers were mobilized and deployed last year versus roughly 110,000 today.
Some ask why these changes are being made now, at a time of war?
Well, change is hard at any time, but the changes are essential because we are at war. Indeed, I would suggest that the recent demands on the force -- and the threats our country faces in the Global War on Terror -- have made these long overdue changes even more urgently needed. And this is an historic opportunity to get it right.
But how, some are asking, will this affect the Guard's ability to respond to an emergency or natural disaster at home?
The Army's proposal does not change the total number of brigades in the Guard, but it does adjust the mix of units in a way that better suits the Guard's unique roles and responsibilities. Specifically, six combat brigades are being converted to six support brigades. These support units include assets such as military police, engineers and civil affairs -- specialties that are increasingly necessary for homeland defense or to respond to natural disasters.
The new concept of fully funded, fully manned and fully equipped Guard brigades -- particularly support units -- is a development that state and local officials should welcome. By any measure, they will be a vast improvement over the under-manned, and under-equipped Guard and Reserve units of the past decade.
Guard Equipment and Readiness:
Some also ask, if there will be a cut in support for equipment for the National Guard. And why the Guard is leaving some of the equipment in Iraq, rather than returning it immediately to units here at home.
First, it is important to remember that the challenge of properly equipping the Army did not start with this war. The Army leadership estimates that they began the Global War on Terror in 2001 with a $56 billion shortfall across all components of the Army -- shortages were particularly acute in the Reserves Components.
In years past, there was uneven quality and readiness between different states and different units across the Guard. This was particularly the case with combat brigades. Of the 34 combat brigades, only 15 -- less than half -- were labeled "enhanced," meaning that they were supposed to receive the highest priority for training and resources.
But because of these inherited deficiencies, the Army had to cross level people and equipment across the Guard to make deploying units whole -- including the so-called "enhanced" brigades.
Once a deployment is completed, it makes little sense to expend enormous resources to repeatedly move heavy equipment back and forth from the Middle East. This is particularly the case for items like up-armored Humvees, tanks, or Bradley Fighting Vehicles that have relatively little use at home, but are needed in theater.
Significantly, these deployments and redeployments offer a needed opportunity to reset the Guard units with the skills and equipment the Army will need in the future, instead of simply resetting them with what they had had in the past.
Under the Army's proposal, instead of having 15 Guard combat brigades considered, but not really "enhanced," there will be 28 brigade combat teams that will, in fact, for the first time, be fully manned, trained and equipped -- just like their active duty counterparts.
The process of fully transforming the Army -- active and reserve component alike -- will not be all fixed or finished in this or the next fiscal year. It is a process that involves resetting dozens of units and adjusting the specialties and assignments of tens of thousands of soldiers. It is an enormous task and a tough challenge, one that General Schoomaker has compared to tuning an engine while the car is moving.
At any given time a close observer could drop a plumb line in the process and identify any number of deficiencies. That is to be expected.
But as one considers the changes taking place in the Army, it is important to view what is happening not in terms of the immediate moment, but where things are heading -- and the US Army is heading toward a properly funded Guard and Reserve fully capable of protecting America at home and abroad.
That is something every American concerned about our nation's security, as well as the well being of our "citizen soldiers," should welcome and support.
Army End Strength:
Nonetheless, many continue to ask, given the pace of deployments and the stress of the force, shouldn't the size of the active Army be increased?
The answer is that we have already increased the size of the active Army by some 12,000, under the emergency authorities granted by the Congress, with plans to go up by a total of 30,000 if required. More important, we have increased the size of the warfighting Army -- the teeth -- and reduced the size of the institutional Army -- the tail -- in ways that do not require an increase in statutory end strength.
At issue is whether there should be a permanent increase in the statutory end strength -- meaning that the U.S. Army would be required by law to maintain tens of thousands of additional troops on the payrolls -- regardless of whether the Army leadership thinks that is necessary or desirable -- and in the face of the enormous cost that that would build into future budgets at the expense of needed procurement and quality of life for the troops. We do not think that necessary or wise at this time.
Protecting our troops in combat theaters continues to be the top priority of this Department. We face a thinking and adaptive enemy. The military is aggressively developing new equipment, technologies and procedures to counter the threats from Improved Explosive Devices and other methods employed by the terrorists to attack Coalition troops.
Last year, over 4,400 new, Level 1, factory-built, up-armored Humvees, and over 16,000 add-on armor kits were fielded by the Army in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Almost 700,000 sets of interceptor body armor have been fielded since the beginning of the war, and over 170,000 sets of additional protection for shoulder and upper-arm areas have also been sent to the combat theaters in Iraq and Afghanistan. This protection is the best available in the world, and has saved a great many lives. The Army's goal is 201,000 -- one for every servicemember and civilian in the CENTCOM area of operations.
The pattern of imposing new programs and costs on the military -- without considering the unintended consequences -- is most evident in the area of health care. And, we all are on notice of this growing problem that threatens the Department's ability to fund its other priorities, and therefore future U.S. military capabilities.
As with the changes underway in the Army, there has been a good deal of confusion and misstatement about what the Department is proposing in regard to health care.
Let me be clear: the United States military provides -- and will continue to provide -- the best possible care for those who have served our country. But the reality is that the way the current health care system is funded is not sustainable. Mainly as a result of benefits added by Congress, often without hearings, the Department's health care costs have almost doubled over the past five years -- from $19 billion in 2001 to $37 billion in Fiscal Year 2006 [$39 billion in Fiscal Year 2007]. This year's proposed shipbuilding budget, by comparison, is $11 billion.
Using a conservative projection, these health care costs will likely reach $64 billion in Fiscal year 2015, an estimated 12 percent of the total Department budget. By comparison, health costs were 4.5 percent of the Department's budget back in 1990.
Because the health coverage offered by the Department is so comprehensive, many private employers are dropping their employer coverage for military retirees and directing their employees to rely on TRICARE instead. In fact, some state governments have passed rules that encourage their employees who are military retirees to use TRICARE and not their state health care systems. In effect, the military is increasingly subsidizing the health care costs of private corporations, organizations, and state and local governments. This is a classic example of good intentions leading to unintended, unwelcome, and expensive consequences. Today nearly 60 percent of the Defense health spending is for retirees, and those costs are projected to keep rising.
To place the health benefit program on a sound fiscal basis for the long term, the Department is proposing to rebalance the share of costs between individuals and the government to approach the levels TRICARE had when the program was initiated by Congress in 1995. Further, we propose that cost shares be indexed so they will be adjusted annually for inflation.
To provide context, in 1995, beneficiaries paid 27 percent of their total health care costs. Today, because there has been no change in TRICARE annual premiums for 11 years, beneficiaries currently pay not 27 percent, but just 12 percent of costs. The proposed plan would ask retirees to pay somewhat more in premiums and for certain co-payments. However, even after adjustments, TRICARE would still be more generous than the best private employer plans. For a single retired junior enlisted serviceman, the average price increase for Prime enrollment fees would equate to 26 cents per day by Fiscal Year 2008, according to one study. For a retired officer's family the change would amount to $2.58 per day.
We also want to explore for new, innovative benefit alternatives such as health savings accounts, which are currently available to other government employees.
A few points should be underscored. Active duty troops and their families -- people who rely on military hospitals as their sole provider of health care -- will not be affected, except for minimal changes to pharmacy co-payments. Those retirees over age 65 in TRICARE for life are not affected, except for minimal changes to pharmacy co-payments. And no one will be forced to leave TRICARE. Further, it should be noted that 82 percent of those who would be affected by these modest changes are employed by the private sector and will have the ability to choose among other available plans.
The plan being proposed, though undeniably necessary and offered with the best interests of the men and women in uniform in mind, has led to predictable concern. But it is worth repeating: the way the current system is funded is simply not sustainable. Indeed, if current trends continue, health funding pressures will soon cut into budgets for training, equipment, and a range of other investments vital to winning the War on Terror and maintaining the quality of life for our troops and their families.
The Chairman, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff and I, unanimously urge the Congress to join in taking the necessary steps to ensure that we sustain a superior health benefit for the Armed Forces, their families, and all retirees, and to ensure needed future U.S. military capability and a strong national defense.
One health care program underway is the newly created support center for severely injured troops and their families. This center augments efforts already underway in the service branches, and has helped thousands of people during a difficult period in their lives.
The Department remains committed to helping those who have risked their lives for their country in every way possible. I never fail to come away enormously impressed and inspired when I meet with the wounded and their courageous families. They are truly remarkable examples of American patriotism and resilience.
Mr. Chairman, the leadership of the Department will be describing a process of continuous change in everything from the way we fight wars to the way we manage personnel. Where, one might ask, is this heading?
As we imagine that soldier, that commander, that brigade, that facility, and that ship -- we have a notion of what America's transformed armed forces might well look like in the years ahead. Changes that will be essential to defeating a range of enemies -- changes essential to keeping our nation safe.
In discussing the budget and the QDR, the tendency will be to talk about a lot of numbers -- numbers of troops, numbers of weapons platforms, and the like.
But I want to conclude by talking about a different metric that crossed my desk a few months ago. That number is 371 -- the total number of Silver Stars and Service Crosses that have been awarded since September 11th to our nation's Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines.
And were it not for the exacting standards the military has for these awards, I suspect the numbers would be much higher, given the superb performance of our troops in places like Fallujah, Ramadi, Kandahar and other grueling battlefields in the Global War on Terror.
In a conversation about the war a few weeks ago, I was asked "Where are the heroes?" There are a great many heroes. And they are doing exactly what needs to be done to keep our country safe and to preserve freedom for our children and their children. We all could do a better job -- media and military alike -- in telling their stories.
Let me briefly highlight just one. Suran Sar was born in Cambodia and came to this country at the age of 15, after most of his family was killed by the Khmer Rouge. He became an American citizen and later volunteered to become an American soldier. He fought in the first Gulf War, rose to the rank of Master Sergeant in the Special Forces, and was deployed to Afghanistan after September 11th.
On March 2, 2005, his team of 12 landed in their Black Hawk helicopters to inspect some suspicious-looking buildings on a snow capped mountain. They immediately came under fire, and Sergeant Sar chased after one of the gunman. He was hit in the head by an enemy bullet, but kept fighting to help the rest of his team that was still pinned down. They ultimately routed the terrorists, seized several weapons, and secured the site.
For his actions on that day he received the Silver Star, the Army's third highest medal for bravery. He would later tell a reporter:
"I kind of feel ashamed to accept such a prestigious award because I feel all I'm doing is something that I love to do ... fighting to serve my country and protecting my guys."
Sergeant Sar is but one of thousands of remarkable people who make up our country's Armed Forces. Some of their accomplishments are known beyond the immediate circle of family and comrades, but most are not.
They are volunteers who could be doing something much easier, safer, and better compensated, but they step forward each year to raise their hand and say, "Send me." They do so fully aware of the risks and are justifiably proud of the noble history they are making.
They have done everything asked of them -- and done it with resilience and courage. We owe it to them -- and the country they have sworn to protect -- to provide the resources, the capabilities and the innovative institutional culture that will not only win today's wars, but also best position them to win America's wars in the decades ahead.
Thank you for your support of the men and women who wear our nation's uniform. I look forward to working with this Committee as our nation engages in a "long war." I am reminded of what President Eisenhower once said about another long struggle -- the Cold War -- comments that seem to have resonance today.
"We face a hostile ideology -- global in scope. . . ruthless in purpose, and insidious in method. . . to meet it successfully we must carry forward steadily, surely, and without complaint the burdens of a prolonged and complex struggle -- with liberty the stake."
Mr. Chairman, just as we did during the Cold War -- what President Kennedy called a "long twilight struggle" -- we will persevere in this "long war" we face today. And with the help of the Congress, we will provide our country with the security it needs and deserves in this new century.


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Isidobe eskell cliffoed
Abstract available in
Claims available in
Description (OCR text may contain errors)
(No Model.) v
Patented Nov. 15
f 1M. H l A, il@
.UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEo ISIDOREESKELL CLIFFORD, OF LONDON, COUNTY OF MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND.
SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 373,339, dated November 15, 1887.
Application led September 5, 1887. Serial No.-248,S79. (No model.) i
To all whom it may concern:
Be it known that I, IsIDoRE EsKELL CLIF- FORD, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at London, in the county of Middlesex, England, have invented a new and useful Improved Construction of Shaft for Screw-Propellers and otherPurposes, of which the following is a specification. V
My invention relates to an improved construction of shaft for screw-propellers and other purposes; and it has for its object to construct the shaft in such a manner that great strength is obtained for the same, the chance of fracture is avoided, and the possibility of quickly repairing a shaft, whether employed for a screw-propeller or for other purpose, is pro vided for.
In the shafts now constructed for, say, screwpropellers it is impossible to ascertain whether any flaw exists in the same, notwithstanding that the greatest care is taken in their manufacture, and in case ot' fracture much time is lost in repairing the shaft or in substituting a new one. In some cases this is even impossible until the vessel arrives in port. I; obviate all these inconveniences by means of my improved but simple construction of shaft as about to be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which- Flgure 1 is a longitudinal section, and Fig.` 2 a transverse section, of a screw-propeller shaft constructed according to my invention.
In carrying out my invention the shaft, instead of being constructed, as heretofore, in one solid piece or forgingor in more than one piece flanged and bolted together, is constructed of a suitable number of tubes or tubu lar pieces fitted one within or 'over the other, but not welded together, as this would be liable to form a solid mass or body, which would defeat the purposes of my invent-ion.
In the figures shown in the drawings the shaft is constructed or built up of, say, three tubes, c b e. All these tubes are, by preference, of the same thickness throughout, and
are retained in place by being forced one into or over the other, although, by preference, they do not terminate in the same vertical line with one another. At one end they are secured to a stepped plug, forming a plate, d, which is connected with the engine, and on the other` end the screw-propeller is mounted in any suitable manner. The innermost tube, a, is tirst tted on, and is then retained in place on the innermost step of the plate by screwbolts. Then the second tube, b, is fitted on and retained in like manner, and finally the third tube, c,- or these tubes may be secured for attachment to the engine in any other Suitable manner. A shaft so constructed will be found to possess greater strength than one made in a solid .piece or in solid pieces. Now, in case of injury arising to any one or more of these tubes, the propeller will still be able to be Worked with the remaining tubes, or it will only be necessary to withdraw said injured tube or tubes and to substitute a sound one or sound ones therefor, a spare number of which can always be carried on board the vessel.
Although I have described and shown my invention as applied to a screw-propeller shaft, it may be applied to the shafting of machinery generally.
yHaving now described my invention and in what manner the same may be carried into effect, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent.-
A shaft for screw-propellers and other machinery, consisting of a suitable number of tubes fitted or built up one within or over the other, substantially as herein described.
In Witness whereof `I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.
68 Fleet Street, London. WALTER J. SKER'IEN,
17 Graceehureh Street, London, E. C.
Referenced by
Original Image

subset: commoncrawl


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August 6, 2009
PODCAST: I Sell the Dead (Larry Fessenden, Glenn McQuaid)
Never trust a corpse. 19th century justice has finally caught up to grave robbers Arthur Blake (Dominic Monaghan) and Willie Grimes (Larry Fessenden). With the specter of the guillotine looming over him, young Blake confides in visiting clergyman Father Duffy (Ron Perlman), recounting fifteen years of adventure in the resurrection trade. His tale leads from humble beginnings as a young boy stealing trinkets from corpses, to a partnership with seasoned ghoul Willie Grimes as they hunt creatures unwilling to accept their place in the ground. The colorful and peculiar history of Grimes and Blake is one filled with adventure, horror, and vicious rivalries that threaten to put all involved in the very graves they're trying to pilfer.I met up with McQuaid and Fessenden (full disclosure: we've met before) at Swift, an East Village pub that held a nostalgic place in Fessenden's heart, liver and oeuvre. The three of us chatted about the unexpected Grammy winner who co-stars in their film, why horror movies should be about working people, and Irish breakdancing gangs. For those who heard the recent news that Fessenden is directing a big-budget remake of The Orphanage for Guillermo del Toro, be sure to stick around until the end. To listen to the podcast, click here. (21:12)
[WARNING: Mildly Explicit Language / NSFW] Podcast Music
INTRO: Kate Bush, "Hammer Horror"
OUTRO: Flat Duo Jets, "Grave Robber" [I Sell the Dead opens in limited release tomorrow, and will be available on-demand through IFC's Festival Direct on August 12. For more info, visit the official site.]
Posted by ahillis at August 6, 2009 9:22 PM


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The Euro 2012 Quarter-finals are upon us with the Czech Republic, Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, England, Germany, and Greece participating. The following slideshow will deal with the predictions of the match and the reason.
Before continuing, it has come to the attention of The Premier League Insider news about a boycott of the quarter-finals by ministers from the UK. The news was published in the BBC Sports website.
The reason for the boycott is the celebration of the venues in Ukraine and political reasons. It is a shame that politicians tend to mess things including sports.
The politicians as well as certain elements of the press should separate politics from sports. Many of them boycott the Euros in Ukraine but would likely go to Eurovision 2012 in Azerbaijian or a concert in Cuba.
After expressing the concept of separation of politics from sports, the time has come for the Euro 2012 Quarter-finals predictions.


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Product Catalog > Jewelry > Men's > Men'S Presidential Seal Gold Plated Oval Office Cuff Links
Men'S Presidential Seal Gold Plated Oval Office Cuff Links
You are viewing a beautiful, brand new pair of mens Presidential Seal Oval Office cuff links. These cufflinks are hand painted and capture the many unique details of the Presidential Seal. These details include the mighty American Bald Eagle, clutching an olive branch in one foot and 13 arrows representing the fighting spirit of the original colonies in the other. The eagles body is a shield, adorned with13 red and white stripes which also represent the 13 colonies. Above this shield is a blue bar, symbolic of the uniting of the 13 colonies. The Eagle is surrounded by 50 tiny gold stars representing the current 50 states. These magnificent cuff links are plated with stunning 14KT gold and come complete with a beautiful gift box, ready for gift giving.


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Airplane makes emergency landingJuly 26,2014Airplane makes
emergency landing
SOUTH BURLINGTON Officials say no one was hurt as a jet made an emergency landing shortly after takeoff from the Burlington International Airport.
Heather Bowman, operations specialist at the airport, told the Burlington Free Press that the Canadair regional jet 200 made the landing at about 5:30 p.m. Thursday and it was attributed to mechanical issues after the pilot felt unknown vibrations. The flight was on its way to Detroit.
Bowman said the Delta Airline operated plane was up in the air for about 15 minutes. A brief inspection was done after it landed.MORE IN This Just InFarmer Olympics Full StoryBROC receives Full StoryArt donated Full Story
- Most Popular
- Most Emailed
- RICHARD'S POOR ALMANACK: On this day 1739, 'Richard Palmer' identified in prison at York Castle as the notorious outlaw DICK TURPIN; IN 1836, Battle of the Alamo begins near San Antonio de Bexar, Texas; 1896, the Tootsie Roll invented by LEO HIRSCHFELD.
- RICHARD'S POOR ALMANACK: On this day in 1472, Orkney, Shetland islands put up as collateral by Norway to Scotland in lieu of dowry for MARGARET OF DENMARK on her marriage with JAMES III, king of Scotland; 1962, JOHN GLENN first American to orbit Earth.
- TOMORROW'S HEADLINES TODAY: City mayoral candidates debate campaign issues; Hartford, Conn., woman still missing; Neal Goswami reports attempts to legislate suicide; local woman loses 100 pounds through TOPS program.
- RICHARD'S POOR ALMANACK: On this day in 1878, JOHN TUNSTALL murdered near Lincoln, New Mexico, by the outlaw JESSE EVANS; in 1930, ELM FARM OLLIE first cow to fly in aircraft, first to be milked airborne; 1955, nuke test WASP; '79, snow in Sahara.
- TOMORROW'S HEADLINES TODAY: Rutland Herald News Editor Alan J. Keays and staff writer Gordon Dritschilo discuss stories planned for the February 18, 2015, edition of the newspaper: Winter budgets maxed, legal marijuana, Springfield bank job, USPS slowdown
- RICHARD'S POOR ALMANACK: On this day in 1249 AD, ANDRE of LONGJUMEAU is dispatched by LOUIS IX of France to meet the KHAGAN, ruler of the Mongol Empire; in 1804, during 1st Barbary War, STEPHEN DECATUR scuttles the pirate-held USS Philadelphia in Tripoli.


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Airport Taxi Services
Rapid transport needs and growth of populations in major cities and towns around the world has seen the airport taxi services become crucial to facilitate transport to and from airports. The effect of globalization and the rise of multinational companies which have roots in almost every part of the world in terms of workforce and brand has become one of the major fuelling factors that has made transportation be reformed and facilitated to save on time. Gone are the days that one would hassle to find a taxi in a crowded airport such as New York or Heathrow. For business reasons, businessmen cannot afford to use their private vehicles all the time so through the services of airport taxis they make sure that their employees reach safely and on time to their destinations. It is more efficient than any other means of transport because you can reach faster, all one needs to do is provide the address of where they are going. By virtue of taxi drivers being locals of their respective cities, they know the routes and streets and can get you there without unnecessary delays.
Having gone digital, one can book taxis online before they reach their destinations. In fact if one books well in advance, they will find their taxi waiting for them at the specific time they indicated while booking. Payments can be made through credit cards. The airport taxi helps one to save a great deal of time and money. You do not have to think about filling gas and filling in car insurance papers which are accompanied but a lot of costs if you had your private car.
Most airport taxis work 24 hours a day to fit into the schedules of their passengers. Many companies especially in major cities like New York and London would have a large fleet because of the heavy traffic of passengers going through the airport. They often offers services which are beyond the usual transportation. They can be used to deliver packages and parcels. This prevents customers from courier warehouses and other stops. Packages arrive instantly delivered skipping the costs that can come up in between.
Some taxi companies have wheelchair accessible vehicles which are a great assistance to persons with disability. Other forms of public transport could lack the facilities needed to transport these individuals so they are spared the hassle and bustle of trying to reach their destination. Some have fitted children's seats for little children. Many taxi companies have taken to transporting luggage. They use additional resources like vans which are used to transport heavy luggage in a reliable and safe manner. Most of those taxis are insured so that in case of any problem issues can be handled via the appropriate channels.
These taxi companies charge different rates for their services, some even have special VIP services. It is upon one to find out the most reliable transport company so that they can book for their employees or themselves. These taxis have changed the way people travel and they have done a lot to save time and money.


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Hartford remains king of these power rankings and BFA-St. Albans moves back to No. 2. However, Champlain Valley nearly seized the No. 2 position after its big win over Essex (CVU, BFA meet in Week 5, by the way).
Speaking of the Redhawks, Nick Ferrentino has emerged as one of the state's best running backs. I'm not sure of his season rushing total to date, but the junior has 10 TDs in three wins. He certainly joins the best back conversation with the likes of South Burlington's Connor DeVarney, North Country's Nick LeClair, Windsor's Matt Rafus, Middlebury's Marshall Hastings and Milton's Michael McClellan. The bevy of good backs in the state won't make our job any easier when it comes time to select All-State teams.
As always, offer your thoughts and opinion in the comments section. I'll update soccer and field hockey rankings Tuesday.
1. Hartford (3-0): The Hurricanes flashed their strength Saturday, rushing for 539 yards in the win over MMU. As it stands now, Hartford plays only two teams with winning records the rest of the season (St. Johnsbury, Rutland). An undefeated regular season is very likely. Last week: 1
2. BFA-St. Albans (2-1): Sam Rose and Doug Saffo did the damage in place of the injured Connor Roberts and BFA bounced back in strong fashion. It was enough of a performance against a rising but also injured-bitten South Burlington squad to push the Bobwhites back to No. 2 Last week: 4
3. Champlain Valley (3-0): Nick Ferrentino continues to put up impressive numbers – our Ted Ryan had him for 242 yards and four TDs – as the Redhawks romped to victory over Essex. But after collecting wins against teams that have combined for one victory, CVU 's schedule toughens with upcoming home dates vs. St. Johnsbury and BFA-St. Albans. Last week: 3
4. Milton (3-0): The Yellowjackets were undefeated in the first month of last season, running back Michael McClellan mentioned to me after Friday's 28-7 win over Rice. Milton ended up missing the playoffs, something McClellan and his teammates have no intentions of repeating in 2011. McClellan was Friday's stat star, but what will carry Milton far is its tenacious defensive pressure. The 'Jackets don't quit in that regard. Last week: 5.
5. South Burlington (2-1): Injuries to the offensive line two weeks ago were only compounded when All-State running back Connor DeVarney and quarterback Evan Nolting left Friday's loss to BFA-St. Albans with injuries. Last week: 2
6. North Country (3-0): The expected nip-and-tuck battle against Fair Haven finished out in thrilling fashion. The Falcons rallied from a 10-point deficit, shredding the Slater defense with 265 rushing yards. I've noted North Country's senior-heavy squad in this space before, but it serves another mention here: Experience was likely a factor in the comeback. Last week: 7
7. Middlebury (3-0): After playing dispatching three winless teams in the first three weeks, the Tigers head to Rutland for a key Week 4 matchup. Last week: 8
8. Fair Haven (2-1): They might have lost a tough road game, but the Slaters will be a dangerous squad for every opponent week in and week out. Expect them to bounce back against Division III Poultney before the Oct. 1 showdown with Burr and Burton. Last week: 6
9. Burr and Burton (2-1): The Bulldogs outlasted Bellow Falls in a double-overtime thriller. Quarterback Jake Stalcup rallied Bulldogs, according to the Bennington Banner. BBA had lost an OT game to Milton the week before, too. Last week: 9
10. Rutland (2-1): The Raiders move into the top 10 for the first time this season, but will need to do more this week against Middlebury to make a big jump. Last week: Bubble
On the bubble: Colchester (2-1) and St. Johnsbury (2-1) are Division I teams that deserve a mention while Windsor (3-0) has shown to be the class of Division III.
Week 4 schedule
Friday's games
Colchester at B.F.A.
Brattleboro at Hartford
South Burlington at Burlington
Middlebury at Rutland
Mt. St. Joseph at Montpelier
Poultney at Fair Haven
Woodstock at Winooski
Saturday's games
Essex at Mt. Mansfield
Milton at Otter Valley
Mt. Anthony at Spaulding
Windsor at Bellows Falls
St. Johnsbury at CVU
Fairfax at Oxbow
North Country at Rice
Springfield at Burr and Burton
U – 32 at Lyndon
Mill River at Mt. Abraham


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Wireless & VPN Access
Wireless Access on Campus
Wireless Printing from your laptop computer
Virtual Private Network (VPN) Off Campus
Do I have to use the VPN?
Troubleshooting & Frequently Asked Questions
Wireless Access on Campus
Unsecured Wireless Access
ATT unsecured wireless access is freely available on the IUPUI Campus. It is recommended that all IUSM users connect to the IU Secure Wireless network.
Connecting to IU Secure
To gain full Internet access for your device on the IU Secure network, you must register the device's MAC address at: https://dhcp.iu.edu/ Otherwise, your device will not receive an IP address that allows a successful Internet connection.
Once your device's MAC address has been registered, select the type of device here to continue.
Connecting to the VPN via IU Secure
Once your device is working with IU Secure, to access the Virtual Private Network (VPN) follow the directions for Junos Pulse, the preferred way to access the VPN on your mobile device.
If you have questions or need help connecting to IU Secure, contact University Information Technology Services (UITS) at: 317-274-4357.
Wireless Printing from your Laptop
- First, establish a connection to the IU Secure Wireless Network
- Next, download the IU Printer Finder
- Once the IU Printer Finder is downloaded, under Campus select Indianapolis and for Building choose IB - Ruth Lilly Medical Library. If you are printing from a Windows based machine, select Library_Printers_BW under Available Printers (*some Adobe products may require you to print to Library_Printers_BW_PS). If printing from a Mac, select Library_Printers_BW_PS.
- Once selected, you'll be able to release your job from any Print Station in the Library.
- After using the IU Printer Finder, why can't I print from my laptop?
- Need help? Contact UITS at 274-4357.
Virtual Private Network (VPN) Off Campus
Accessing Medical Library Databases & Journal Subscriptions from Off Campus
Many resources at the Ruth Lilly Medical Library require authentication using your IUPUI username and password. Use of the VPN will allow off campus computers to recognize your computer as part of the network and allow you to access library resources.
Why use the VPN?
Instructions for connecting to the VPN
If you have questions or need help connecting to IU VPN, contact University Information Technology Services (UITS) at: 317-274-4357.
If you have trouble accessing Medical Library resources, such as journal subscriptions and databases, please contact: firstname.lastname@example.com or call 274-4876 M-F 8am-5pm.
Do I have to use the VPN?
No. However, when accessing Medical Library resources you may be asked to "authenticate" or log on to resources using your IUPUI username and password. Use of the VPN will minimize the number of times you need to authenticate.
Troubleshooting & Frequently Asked Questions
Unsure if you have an IUPUI username and password?
Computing Accounts
People Finder
IU Health Library account or access questions?
Contact: IU Health Library at Methodist Hospital
1801 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46202
I'm having problems when I'm connected to IU Guest.
For the IUPUI campus, please use the free AT&T WIFI connection instead of IU Guest. For instructions to connect to AT&T, please see https://kb.iu.edu/data/azqb.html
I am getting an error message that says port is not connected.
For help in this error message (also known as Error 619) see https://kb.iu.edu/data/amnv.html
Why can't I connect to the VPN?
Make sure that your operating system and/or browser is compatible with IU's VPN. A list of compatible operating systems and browsers can be found at https://kb.iu.edu/data/aygt.html
Configure Your Web Browser to Accept Cookies from Ruth Lilly Medical Library Sites
Your Web browser needs to be configured to accept cookies from https://proxy.medlib.iupui.edu
For information on how to do this, contact 317-274-4357 OR https://kb.iu.edu/data/ajfi.html#CHANGINGCR
Problems Accessing Ruth Lilly Medical Library Journal Subscriptions or Databases?
Contact email@example.com or call 274-4876 M-F 8am-5pm.


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HAZLETON — A group of special needs students were getting help from an unlikely place: a grocery store.
Some special needs students in the Hazleton Area School District don't always spend time in a traditional classroom. We found them at the Heritage Supermarket in Hazleton. There they got training on some aspects of retail.
"It's developing job skills for them to use upon graduation. Every Friday the store is generous enough to pick a student of the week, and they give them a $10 gift certificate," explained Gino Molino of the Hazleton Area School District.
Justice Coxe is a senior at Hazleton Area.
"We actually pull the stuff forward and we turn stuff around and that," said Justice. "And the truck comes and we actually put stuff on the shelves."
In another part of the store, Louis Martinez and a friend were making salads.
"Helps me a lot cut the food for salad," Louis said. "It will help me out at the high school."
Store officials like helping the special needs students.
"Every year they do a little bit more and they're learning a little bit more and it's helping them and it helps us," said Lorie Malloy of Heritage Supermarket.
There were about 18 students in the program, with one shift in the morning the second in the afternoon. School officials and store representatives called it a success.


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NORTHBRIDGE, Mass – State officials brought a cautionary tale to area town administrators as they prepare budgets for Fiscal Year 2013.
Gov. Deval Patrick's proposed budget provides little in the way of extra state aid, and some of what is there may go away as the Senate and House of Representatives reviews and makes its own recommendations.
State Sen. Jennifer L. Flanagan, assistant vice-chairman of the Senate Committee on Ways & Means, advised local officials to rely on last year's budget numbers to be safe. "I would be very cautious,'' she said.
Flanagan spoke Friday morning during the annual "The State of Local Aid'' meeting hosted by Sen. Richard T. Moore, D-Uxbridge, at the Singh Performance Center at Alternatives on Douglas Road.
In addition to Flanagan, guest speakers were Roger Hatch, administrator of School Finance for the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education; and Rick Kingsley, bureau chief of the Municipal Data Management and Technical Assistance Bureau of the Division of Local Services.
A final state budget is expected in July, Flanagan said. An earlier budget isn't possible, she said, because federal aid and tax collection numbers aren't yet known. It can't be set in stone until all the "variables'' are known, she said.
The state is doing "better,'' she said, pointing to an improved bond rating and more people working. "But we're still treading water'' in tax collection, the federal stimulus money has dried up, and Massachusetts lost a court case regarding health care for illegal aliens which carries a $150 million price tag.
In addition, health care costs continue to rise, and with the recession, the state is also dealing with a large increase in transitional assistance.
"All the programs you and I support will have to be looked at,'' Flanagan said, and with many of those programs "already cut to the bone, we're not looking forward to having to make decisions about them.''
Hatch reviewed Chapter 70 funding for schools, and acknowledged that adjustments are needed. "Special Education is the number one problem and still remains underfunded,'' he said.
Reimbursement "really should be raised to be a better reflection of what schools really spend,'' he said.
"People are looking for substantial change in the foundation budget,'' Hatch said, which is the state's calculation of an "adequate spending level for a district.'' He believes change is possible without a cumbersome, years-long study.
Despite significant improvement in many areas, Moore said the state is looking at a $1.3 billion budget shortfall.
Budget deliberations will be difficult, he said. "Much of the state budget is already obligated. We don't have a lot to play with.''
Kingsley recommended anyone interested in the state budget sign up to receive regular updates to the state budget process at http://www.mass.gov/dor/local-offiials/dis-newsroom/subscribe.html.


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Dozens of students rallied outside the Department of Education headquarters on Monday morning, many of them wearing their college T-shirts, to deliver a petition with nearly 120,000 signatures demanding that the Department hold colleges accountable in preventing sexual violence on their campuses, as required by federal law.
The "ED Act Now" rally and petition asked for increased and stricter enforcement of Title IX, a 1972 law prohibiting gender-based discrimination that requires any college receiving federal funding to ensure equal access to education, free from sexual harassment and assault. Survivors and other activists in the ED Act Now movement are demanding strong, enforced sanctions for colleges found non-compliant under the law. Several of them met with department officials after the rally to discuss the petition's demands.
The past few years have seen a rising tide of Title IX complaints from students alleging that college administrations have mishandled sexual assault cases and failed to enact prevention measures. Student activists across campuses have been connecting online to coordinate filing complaints. Monday's protest was the first time that many of them met in person.


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Football-related arrests for violence dropped last season the Home Office has announced.
The overall number of fans arrested also fell last year, with no arrests at 67% of all international and domestic matches.
'Statistics on Football-Related Arrests and Banning Orders Season 2008-09' reveals there were 3,752 arrests last season - down 2% on the year before.
They also show violent incidents were down 5%, with just 354 fans arrested for violence out of the total attendance figure of 37 million at football matches last year.
Policing Minister David Hanson MP said:
"Hooligans once blighted our national game, but we now set an example for the rest of the world in how we police football matches.
"I am pleased with the way clubs and police work together, but we must also praise fans for realising violence has no place in the modern game.
"We are not complacent and will carry on working to ensure this success story continues into the future."
The new figures mean just 0.01% of 37 million supporters attending matches in England and Wales last year were arrested. Fans were also well-behaved abroad - more than 105,000 fans travelled to 49 games in European club competitions last year, but just 30 were arrested.
The latest statistics revealed during the 2008/09 season:
- 3,752 arrests were made at domestic and international matches in England and Wales;
- there were 1.18 arrests per game;
- the number of football banning orders on 10 November was 3,180 - representing 956 new orders imposed last year; &
- 92% of individuals whose banning orders have expired are assessed by police as no longer posing a risk to football disorder.


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Chris Churchill
Quick hits from a Times Union columnist
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Update: $500 offered for Freedom's return
Last Sunday's column — read it here — brought an amazing outpouring of support from people hoping to see Freedom the cat returned to her original home in East Greenbush. So far, though, the cat's adopters have not come forward to return her to the Stoddard family. A woman from East Greenbush, who wants to […] [Read More]
Update: Good karma — and replacing an ugly patio
A contractor had made an ethical choice — and is righting a wrong The wrong is Ray and Karen Smith's backyard patio, which I wrote about earlier this month. In the Smith's opinion — and mine — the patio was riddled with mistakes. But their contractor, Frank Emmi, insisted there was nothing fundamentally wrong with […] [Read More]
Column: In Troy, a good neighbor after all
Today's Advocate column is an unusual one. It doesn't involve a consumer complaint or government wrongdoing. (Well, at least not recent government wrongdoing.) The column features Mitch Warren, a resident of the Hill Street Inn in the Little Italy section of South Central Troy. Warren called me this week, telling me that her home, an […] [Read More]
Update: The generosity of VCR owners cannot be denied
My recent column about Sister Shirley Maloney's lousy VCR and DVD player brought many offers from readers willing to donate video-cassette recorders to Maloney and her housemate, Sister Jean Keating. I wasn't able to respond to all of the offers. The generosity was so strong, in fact, that the sisters could probably open a well-stocked […] [Read More]


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Rutherford County: Soccer powerhouse?
In case you haven't heard, Rutherford County is home to two conference champions this fall. With wins last Wednesday night, Thomas Jefferson and Chase soccer clinched the Southern Piedmont and South Mountain Athletic conferences, respectively.
While the county, myself included, was focused so much on Friday nights and how our American football teams were doing, we missed some of the best soccer in the state.
Thomas Jefferson head coach Brian Espinoza is continuing to build a soccer power down in Avondale with players like Alain Colnot, Nathan Mackey, Joseph Pate and Mathias Talbert.
Colnot, the reigning Rutherford County Player of the Year, is following his stellar junior season with a senior season that includes 16 goals and nine assists. Mackey leads the team with 14 assists while adding six goals.
Talbert, a junior, looks to be in line as the next great Gryphons senior after recording 10 goals and five assists during the regular season.
And let's not forget about senior goalie Stephen Maimone keeping the ball out of the Thomas Jefferson (15-1-1, 9-1 SPC) net.
Just up the road in Henrietta, Chase head soccer coach Greg Deshommes and his Trojans (15-2-1, 15-1 SMAC) claimed the program's firs conference championship in just it sixth year.
The Trojans are led by freshmen scoring machines Nube Jimenez and Preston Walker while sophomore midfielder Jose Vasquez leads the conference in assists with 14.
However, lost in the shuffle is the Trojan defense that's allowed only eight goals the entire season led by senior goalkeeper and team captain Ansoni Jimenez.
And let's recognize that the only conference foe to defeat the Trojans were the Hilltoppers of R-S Central.
The Hilltoppers (12-5, 11-5 SMAC) finished third in the conference behind Chase and Shelby and look to be in play for a playoff bid under first-year head coach Ruffin Tanner.
Look for the Hilltoppers to reestablish themselves as a power in the Western part of the state in the coming years.
With all of that in mind, it's looking like the balance of fall sports power in Rutherford County in swinging towards soccer.
Since 2004, East Rutherford, Chase, R-S Central and Thomas Jefferson have just six combined winning football seasons. The only conference championship in the past decade belongs to the 2005 Cavaliers that went 12-1 overall and 5-0 in conference play.
Granted that could change this year as TJCA sits at 6-3, Chase at 5-4 and R-S Central at 4-4, however, it doesn't appear as if any conference titles or state championships are in the cards.
With the recent success in soccer and the relative irrelevance of Rutherford County football, the county might want to hang its autumn hat on the fútbol players instead of the boys on the gridiron.
So keep an eye on the soccer playoff pairings set to be released on Monday and get out and see the soccer talent that Rutherford County is blessed with. We might be witnessing the start of something special.
Winning sparks interest, interest sparks participation, participation sparks passion and passion sparks more success.


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In April 2000, husband and wife Neville and Catherine Hockley fell head-over-heels for the sailboat Dream Time in a Long Island parking lot. In June 2007, they packed up their stationary lives in New York and set sail for an eight- to ten-year adventure on the water.
Today, Dream Time is the couple's home and office as they sail around the world, working remotely to run a New York-based design studio while blogging about their journey and documenting the people and places they discover along the way.
The plan is a complete circumnavigation that will take the Hockleys across the Pacific to New Zealand and Australia, then up to southeast Asia and over to India. They intend to travel up the Red Sea to Cairo before exploring the Mediterranean, crossing the Atlantic and returning to New York City.
Read excerpts from their adventure below and join ABC News in tracking their travels. The couple is on the island of Moorea at present.
We're anchored in the famous Cook's Bay on the island of Moorea, which lies just 10 nautical miles off Tahiti's northwest coast. We've been exploring the island for five days, two of those days on bicycles which we hired from 'Fun Bike', one of the only two bike rental businesses on the island.
Now I'm not usually one to complain, and our journal entries are usually of a positive nature, but unless you're staying at one of the swanky resorts that boast their own private shiny inventory of new bikes, I strongly recommend, should you find yourself on Moorea one day, that you hire a scooter, car, beach buggy, ATV, hitchhike or just walk instead. You see, the name 'Fun Bike' is just a little misleading. Sure the 'bike' portion is true enough, they do in fact rent them, but with saddles like rolling pins, brakes that just barely reduce your speed, frames lathered in oil, greasy chains that refuse to stay on the gears, and one peddle that just clean snapped right off, we were sadly a little shortchanged on the 'fun' portion of our rental experience.
With our friends and biking companions, Helge and Therese from Coquelicot, it became apparent after just a few painful miles of grinding gears, bruised bottoms (and in my case, a saddle that wouldn't lock properly and slowly lowered under my weight until the seat hit the frame, forcing me to either peddle standing up or ride seated extremely low down with bent legs and my knees rising up practically to head level) that our grand plans to circumnavigate the island on its 60 kilometer coastal road was just a little optimistic. We made it around the north half of the island, but by the end of our second day were in no condition to attempt the southern coast or even consider the steep interior roads. So we made plans to rent a car instead and join the convoy of happy tourists that frequently passed us comfortably while we toiled on our fun bikes.


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Bonnaroo 2011 kicked off its tenth anniversary Thursday afternoon, and reached its first climax with three massive headliners Friday night, including My Morning Jacket (8pm) followed by Arcade Fire (11pm) on the stadium-sized main stage (known as the "What Stage") and then Lil Wayne at 2am on a large side stage (the "Which Stage"). Sure, there were dozens of solid shows (and some comedians) leading up to this amazing musical trifecta. But with more than 80,000 people — mostly kids braving extreme heat and humidity without being able to shower — camping out on festival grounds that stretch out over a 700-acre expanse under a vast sky, Bonnaroo was made for big moments. Plus, the smaller tents, if you can squeeze in, don't always provide enough room for the hippie–ish contingent to properly dance and twirl glow sticks.
My Morning Jacket opened its two-hour set with with an extended, trumpet and voice only intro of "Victory Dance," the first song off their new album Circuital. Much has been made about MMJ's so-called return to their roots by recording the new album direct to analog tape in a gym in their hometown of Louisville, Kentucky as opposed to the NYC studio that served as headquarters for their last album (Evil Urges). By opening with the first track from Circuital, MMJ may have been announcing a homecoming of sorts to the mostly Southern audience. Regardless, "Victory Dance" was an apt choice to celebrate with the friendly Bonnaroo crowd how far the band has come. Having played the fest four times in the past, but never on the main stage, frontman Jim James noted, "it's such an honor."
In a powerful, two-hour set featuring Jim's heavy guitar solos and big falsetto voice — plus backup by The Preservation Hall Jazz Band from New Orleans and the Nashville Horn Association — MMJ ran through a large chunk of Circuital as well as songs from Evil Urges ("Highly Suspicious"), Z ("Gideon," "Anytime"), and It Still Moves ("Golden," "One Big Morning"). Interestingly, MMJ's large repertory and wide range of styles (southern, indie, jam and even funk) makes them widely appealing at Bonnaroo, but it also makes it difficult for them to please everyone. Longtime fans seemed especially disappointed that the band chose not to perform the most popular songs from their earliest albums. In fact, MMJ hardly played anything at all off of The Tennessee Fire or At Dawn. And different factions of the audience seemed to react more (or less) enthusiastically to the band's various musical styles and eras.
Indie act Arcade Fire, which topped the night's bill, didn't have that problem. At first, the band's heavy playing of relatively delicate instruments (violin, tambourine, accordion, mandolin) felt somewhat light compared to MMJ. But the band's extra-tight performance seemed to grow stronger and more intense with every single song. Unlike MMJ, Arcade Fire chose to focus on a small number of crowd favorites (we counted 17), and deliver those gems faithfully, without much in the way of improvisation, which may be a good or bad thing depending on your taste.
Their set was bookended with songs from their Grammy-winning The Suburbs, opening with "Ready to Start" and closing in a frenzy with "Empty Room." At one point during the show, Arcade Fire frontman Win Butler said: "Any festival where you can see My Morning Jacket and Lil Wayne is OK with me." But at the end of the night, Arcade Fire drew the biggest audience (we have no idea how many tens of thousands), played with the most consistent intensity, and seemed to make the most people sing along and dance. They earned their spot at the top of Friday's lineup.
To be fair, we saw only a few minutes of Lil Wayne's set — and he seemed to be on point and more than handling his own. But his show started late, after 1:30am, and we were exhausted from battling the sun all day. You'll have to hit up our younger colleagues at MTV to read about Lil Wayne wowing Bonnaroo. Check out photos and video from this year's fest:


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Air Cargo
The European Union has opened an investigation into FedEx's efforts to acquire TNT Express on the grounds that there would be insufficient competition in the market.
IAG Cargo's revenue grew 8.8 percent in the second quarter as favorable exchange rate movements offset lower traffic and a flat load factor.
Japan Airlines Corp.'s revenue from cargo operations grew faster than overall revenue in the first quarter of fiscal 2015, helping the carrier's net profit surge 120.7 percent in the April-June quarter from the same three-month period last year to 32.6 billion yen ($263 million) on a consolidated basis.
Blue Dart Express, India's leading air express and logistics service provider, posted a big jump in net earnings in the first fiscal quarter, as income from operations increased significantly, driven by new business strategies.
Lufthansa Cargo's five-year winning streak ended abruptly in the second quarter as it slumped to a 68 million euros ($74.8 million) operating loss from a 20 million euro profit a year ago.
ANA Holdings Inc. saw its group net profit more than double year-over-year in the first quarter of fiscal 2015, which started in April, despite weaker revenue from cargo operations.
IAG Cargo and Finnair Cargo have signed an agreement to share space on a freighter service between London Luton and Helsinki airports as the two carriers map out a new strategy following their decision not to operate their own cargo aircraft.
TNT Express posted a 6.2 percent increase in second-quarter revenue, driven by a stronger dollar and growing business from small and medium-sized customers.
Air France-KLM's cargo business is sinking deeper into the red as its second-quarter operating loss soared to 78 million euros ($86 million) from 45 million euros a year ago despite desperate cost-cutting measures.
The slack season has hit the air cargo business hard this year with no sign of any improvement on the major trades as momentum steadily drains out of the market and freight rates tumble to new lows.


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New pub could be the next part of the Green Man's revival
Posted: May 15, 2014|
A beating heart could soon find its way back into the Royal Green Man Hotel. Gareth Butterfield takes a look at early plans for a new gastro-pub at the St John Street venue.
WE had to put a lot of faith in businessman Colin Wright, when he finally stepped forward as the new owner of the Green Man Royal Hotel in February 2013.
Mr Wright, chairman of a string of local companies who lives with his family in Fenny Bentley, put an end to what had been an extremely tumultuous journey for the hotel when he bought it shortly after a second failed attempt to sell the St John Street building's freehold at an auction in Nottingham.
But, in many ways, his purchase marked the start of another journey – perhaps the most important in its history.
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Plans were drip-fed to the News Telegraph of how the business and the building could be saved, which raised one or two eyebrows.
The biggest controversy arrived when it was announced that the former Johnson and Boswell bars, which had been the backdrop for many happy nights out, would be turned into a shop.
The bombshell put paid to a misty-eyed vision many in the town had of the Green Man being brought back to what it used to be. A vision that, in reality, would not have been viable in the economic climate.
Mr Wright and his team knew that whatever emerged from their rescue attempt would have to look very different if it was to once again become the centre-piece of life in Ashbourne – and they made no secret of the fact that it would be changing.
So we had no choice but to sit back and put our trust in them, catching glimpses of work as we walked past.
The announcement that the first phase would involve a large shop, swallowing up the two beloved bars, was soon followed by an announcement that Ashbourne fashion store Young Ideas, owned by Mr Wright's wife, Anne, would be the Green Man's first new resident.
There was still some cynicism at this stage but, when Young Ideas opened again in its new home, it was obvious that a high-quality job had been done and the signs were good that the team were ready to deliver on their promise of making a proper job of nursing the place back to health.
A big question-mark remained, however, over the future of the Green Man as a drinking and eating establishment. Did its sole future lie in providing space for shops?
Although it had been hinted all along that a pub-type venue could be on the cards, a little later down the line another established Ashbourne clothing store – Go Wilde – moved into the next available shop, across the courtyard in a former office and reception space.
Go Wilde's owner, Sue Wilde, said she is happy the firm took the plunge and moved in to the Green Man.
She said: "Go Wilde Clothing are delighted to be part of the new Green Man development.''
But while signs of life are emerging at the front end of the building, there is still plenty of floor space to develop and one of the biggest headaches for the team working on the Green Man has been to settle on a firm plan.
Project manager Mike Gerard-Pearse said: "Every time we walk around the full 22,000 sq ft of the building it lends itself to a new configuration.
"Living with it every day makes you appreciate its sheer scale and the opportunity to create something unique for the town.
"In fact at times it literally whispers what it would like to become and presents you with a new idea that you had not even thought of – although those voices could easily be the ghosts that allegedly walk the corridors of the old hotel!''
As part of the latest announcement, it has been revealed that a third shop area of 1,000 sq ft has been set aside and is close to completion and a new tenant is being sought to make up a planned trio of independent retailers.
Mr Gerard-Pearse said: "This unit is now available to the local business community or anyone with the ambition and vision to open something new and exciting for the local Ashbourne people to enjoy.''
So what about our pub?
Thankfully, the first assurances we've had so far that a pub could make its way back into the heart of the Green Man Royal Hotel have been given this week and, finally, our faith is being rewarded.
One of the next plans is to develop what the team describes as a "family-friendly gastro-pub!". This will use the old ballroom and its lower ground floor, including the space that was used by Leatherbritches Brewery to the rear of the courtyard.
It is mooted the new pub might be called 'The Old Brewery'.
It is hoped the owners of this new pub, which have not yet been confirmed or announced, will be serving a selection of real ales along with food from an open-plan kitchen on the first floor and the pub and restaurant could be open by the end of the year if planning permission is given.
As part of a shift in plans the construction of the pub has been moved forward in the schedule.
Planning permission has just been granted which will allow the demolition of part of the dilapidated rear section so it can be replaced it with an angular, modern extension.
Ashbourne architect Darren Archer explained: "The new structure will be a modern and sympathetic version of a traditional orangery.
"The design will have plenty of natural light, with a high ceiling and minimalist interior finishes.
''One of the most striking aspects will be the outside space which is predominantly south facing and the new terraces will offer quiet exterior seating in a Mediterranean-style courtyard setting."
Demolition is due to start at the end of this month and temporary decking will spring up in its place to give a visual impression of the new building's footprint.
Another new arrival planned in the coming weeks is a "pop up" café hosted by Green Man regulars Union Street Food.
This will at the side of the Young Ideas retail outlet in its own courtyard area with bistro table seating serving Mediterranean sandwiches, drinks and tapas.
This is due to open on selected days during the week, weather permitting.
Sewing all this together will be the return of hotel rooms at the Green Man.
The first eight could be ready by spring 2015 and a further five are being designed for completion later in the year.
Mr Gerard-Pearse added: "The vision for the Green Man is to create an exciting and viable combination of leisure and retail opportunities – a place to eat, drink, shop and sleep.
"With our current business partners and the experienced local interest in the eating establishments, we are off to a great start."


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CHEYENNE - Is it better to buy a preference point or wait until more points are accumulated to apply for a moose or bighorn sheep license? That question is asked numerous times each year by both resident and nonresident hunters looking to bolster their chances for drawing one of these coveted licenses.
The preference point system for moose and bighorn sheep was implemented 18 years ago and was designed to eventually improve the drawing odds for licenses. By now, most hunters who got in on the ground floor have drawn licenses for these species. In some areas, those who have several to four or five points less than the maximum have also drawn licenses. To make an informed decision on whether to apply for a license or purchase a point requires a basicunderstanding of how the drawing works and information on the drawing odds for the different hunt areas.
In the drawing, the applicants with the highest number of preference points receive priority in the preference point draw with 75 percent of the quota. The remaining 25 percent of the license quota is allocated to a random draw. All hunters, without regard to preference point totals, are placed in the random draw.
For an example of how this works, suppose an area has a total quota of 16 bighorn sheep licenses. Under Wyomingstatute, 75 percent of that quota (12 licenses) would go to residents with the remaining 25 percent (four licenses) issued to nonresidents. Out of the 12 resident licenses, nine would be issued in the resident preference point draw to those who had the highest point totals. The remaining three are issued in the random draw. For nonresidents, three would be issued in the nonresident preference point draw and one in the random draw.
If an area has a small quota, there may not be any licenses available for the random draw. For example, if an area had a total quota of four licenses, three would be issued to residents and one to a nonresident. Since the total resident quota is three and the nonresident quota is one license, all licenses would be issued in the resident and nonresident preference point draws and no quota would be available for a random draw. If a hunter wanted at least a mathematical chance of drawing a license in the random draw, an area with a much larger quota should be considered.
For many hunters, drawing a moose or sheep license is like winning the lottery. And like the lottery, you can't win if you don't play. If only a preference point is purchased, there is no chance of drawing a license, but itwill build points to enhance drawing chances in future years. If an application is made for a license, there is always a small chance in the random draw providing there is sufficient quota. Hunters should keep in mind that failure to apply for a preference point or license for two consecutive years will result in deletion of all preference points from the person's record. The application period to apply only for preference points is July 1-Sept.30.
Drawing odds and quotas for the previous year are available on the Game and Fish website wgfd.wyo.gov. Click on hunting then on drawing odds. Hunters with questions on drawing odds and the application process can call 307-777-4600.
(Contact: Al Langston (307) 777-4540)


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The Westborough Gallery
Meet local artists and see their work in this show dedicated to all forms of art. The artists on the show are featured in the Westborough Gallery located at 8 West Main Street in Westborough. Viewers will be able to see the not-for-profit gallery's offerings and go into the artists own homes and studios while they are working on their creations. Find out what inspires the artists in our local community, and then go check out their work at the gallery!
More on the way....