90 years old. Living in his idea of paradise. Not too shabby, I’d say.

Certainly on of the greats of the genre, and one of the few who lived to see some of his dreams come true.

BBC report

Blogger Andrew Olmsted has been killed in Iraq.

MNF-I

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died Jan. 3 in As Sadiyah, Iraq, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked their unit using small arms fire during combat operations. Both Soldiers were assigned to the Military Transition Team, 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kan.

Killed were:

Maj. Andrew J. Olmsted, 37, of Colorado Springs, Colo.
Cpt. Thomas J. Casey, 32, of Albuquerque, N.M.

Matt mourns a colleague. Glenn Reynolds also notes this loss.

Obsidian Wings has a wonderful tribute, and Andrew himself left us a last blog post here.

I had exchanged about two words with Major Olmstead over the years. Not much shared between us. He was as expert an observer as there is concerning the War on Terror. I believe this was his second tour.

We mourn his loss.

Andrew writes:

But for those who knew me and feel this pain, I think it’s a good thing to realize that this pain has been felt by thousands and thousands (probably millions, actually) of other people all over the world. That is part of the cost of war, any war, no matter how justified. If everyone who feels this pain keeps that in mind the next time we have to decide whether or not war is a good idea, perhaps it will help us to make a more informed decision. Because it is pretty clear that the average American would not have supported the Iraq War had they known the costs going in. I am far too cynical to believe that any future debate over war will be any less vitriolic or emotional, but perhaps a few more people will realize just what those costs can be the next time.

National Review Online – Michael Ledeen

NRO The Tank – Steve Schippert

Gates: Thursday, December 13, 2007. Age 91. Survived by his wife Clementine Haubner Zimmer; sons, Edward and Kathleen of Tarrytown, NY, and Stephen and Marianna; grandson, Mark and Michelle; and great-grandsons, Austin and Brandon of Reading, PA; grand-daughters, Kathryn, Paula, Carolyn and Stephanie; sisters-in-law, Gladys and Eileen Zimmer; sister and brother-in-law, Lucille and Richard Sullivan; and brother-in-law, Richard and June Shone; many nieces and nephews. Predeceased by brothers, Herbert, Arthur, Charles, Harold, Raymond; and sister, Eva May.

Robert and his father-in-law, Edward Haubner owned and operated the Haubner and Stallknecht Funeral Home for over 50 years, prior to his retirement in 1986. He was a WWII Army Veteran, member of the Keith Miller Post and a past member of the New York State and National Funeral Directors Association.

The family would like to thank the staff at the Park Ridge Living Center for the excellent care they provided Bob during the past year.

Calling hours, Sunday, December 16, 2007 from 2-5 at the Leo M. Bean and Sons Funeral Home, 2771 Chili Avenue. The Celebration of the Mass of Christian Burial is Monday, December 17, 2007, at 11 AM with Interment following at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please make contributions to St. Jude the Apostle Church, 4100 Lyell Road, or Unity Health Foundation, 1555 Long Pond Road.

My sister’s father-in-law and an all-round good guy. His stories of the aftermath of the Attica uprising were astonishing.

U.S. Marine Sgt. Jessica Turner of 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (Forward), pays her final respect to fallen U.S. Marine Gunnery Sgt. Herman Jerome Murkerson Jr. of Marine Wing Headquarter Squadron-2, after his memorial service at the Memorial Chapel on Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, on Oct. 9. Murkerson was killed in action on Oct. 1 while on patrol in the Al Anbar province of Iraq.

A civilian contractor stationed at Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, pays his final respects to fallen U.S. Marine Gunnery Sgt. Herman Jerome Murkerson Jr. of Marine Wing Headquarter Squadron-2, after his memorial service at the Memorial Chapel on Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, on Oct. 9.

A U.S. Army Soldier aboard Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, pays her final respects to fallen U.S. Marine Gunnery Sgt. Herman Jerome Murkerson Jr. of Marine Wing Headquarter Squadron-2, after his memorial service at the Memorial Chapel on Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, on Oct. 9.

Photos by Photographer: Cpl. Michael Haas, Joint Combat Camera Center

A great Cold Warrior gone to his rest!

DoD
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Oct. 18, 2007 – Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Navy Adm. William J. Crowe died early today at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. He was 82.

Crowe served as chairman from 1985 to 1989 under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.

His Navy career spanned the entirety of the Cold War, from his entry to the service following graduation from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1946 to his retirement as the highest-ranking officer in the military in 1989 as the Soviet Union began to crumble.

“Every man and woman of the U.S. military joins me in mourning the death of retired Admiral William Crowe, Vietnam and Cold War veteran and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,” said Navy Adm. Michael G. Mullen, the current chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “We extend humbly to his family our thoughts, prayers and deepest sympathies in their time of grief and sorrow.

“As we mourn his passing, so too should we reflect on his contributions to our national security — of the thousands of lives he guided, the careers he mentored, the difference he made simply by virtue of his leadership,” Mullen continued. “We are a stronger, more capable military today in large part because of his efforts to make us so. We would all do well to remember that and to never forget the remarkable legacy of this truly humble, truly noble man.”

The Soviet Union and terrorism dominated Crowe’s tenure as chairman. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev introduced perestroika and glasnost – literally, “restructuring” and “openness” — to his nation. Gorbachev meant for the policies to strengthen the Soviet Union and make the country economically competitive with the West.

The openness that Gorbachev wanted included military relations. Crowe was at the epicenter of these changes. The admiral hosted Marshal of the Soviet Union Sergei Akhromeyev during a visit to the Pentagon in 1987. Akhromeyev, the chief of the Soviet General Staff, even attended a meeting with the Joint Chiefs in “The Tank,” the secure room the chiefs use to discuss military matters.

The admiral also confronted the plague of terrorism. Palestinian terrorists were active, with the most famous terrorist act being the hijacking of the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro in 1985. Navy fighters intercepted an Egyptian airliner flying the terrorists to safety and forced the plane to land in Sicily, where Italian authorities took the men into custody.

In addition, Crowe confronted the threat posed by Libya’s Muammar Qadhafi. The state sponsored terrorism and proclaimed a “Line of Death” in the Mediterranean’s Gulf of Sidra. On April 5, 1986, the oil-rich nation sponsored terrorists who bombed a disco in West Berlin, killing two soldiers and a Turkish woman. Ten days later, U.S. Air Force and Navy aircraft attacked military targets in Tripoli and Benghazi.

The admiral was a devotee of the TV show “Cheers,” and played himself in a short appearance on the hit show.

A career submariner, Crowe was born in Kentucky and grew up in Oklahoma City. Following graduation from the Naval Academy, he served aboard the USS Carmick, USS Flying Fish and USS Clamagore. He was executive officer of the USS Wahoo and commanded the USS Trout from 1960 to 1962.

At 44, Crowe volunteered to serve in Vietnam as the senior advisor to the South Vietnamese Riverine Force from 1970 to 1971.

Crowe became a rear admiral in 1973 and held a number of staff jobs in the Pentagon before becoming the commander of the Middle East Force in Bahrain in 1976. After pinning on his fourth star, Crowe commanded Allied Forces Southern Europe from 1980 to 1983 and then served as commander in chief of U.S. Pacific Command in 1983.

Crowe was the first chairman to serve under the Goldwater-Nichols Defense Department Reorganization Act of 1986. The act made the chairman the principal military advisor to the president, defense secretary and the rest of the National Security Council.

Along the way, Crowe received a master’s degree from Stanford University and a doctorate from Princeton.

After his retirement, the admiral served as U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom and on the President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board. The admiral taught political science at the Naval Academy. His book “The Line of Fire” was a memoir of his time in the military.

He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Shirley, his daughter, Bambi, and his sons, Brent and Blake.