Here are twelve of the best stories that we reported on in 2008.

1. January 2008: Throw Out Your American Experience part 1 – This is the first of a series based upon an interview with Gen. Edward Cardon who spoke with me from Baghdad. He presented the situation in Iraq, the Sons of Iraq program and how American perceptions had to change to create the security we now see there.
2. February 2008: Priest Called to Serve – in the Army – This is the story of Father Patrick VanDurme, who was pastor at the church I was baptized in until he was called to another mission. He is now serving as a chaplain in the military.
3. March 2008: Flight Lieutenant Michelle Goodman – The story of this lovely British heroine is one of the top posts ever for ANSJ. Her picture is the real draw, but we cannot forget she is a sh*t-hot pilot.
4. April 2008: Here Lies Real Courage – this is the story of Joe Bowser and his hockey skills. Not so unusual, except he lost his right leg in Iraq.
5. May 2008: Marines Stop Enemy Attack – Heroic Last Stand – This is the story of Lance Cpl. Jordan Haerter and Cpl. Jonathan T. Yale. It has just been announced that they will both receive a posthumous Navy Cross for their courageous actions in Iraq.
6. June 2008: Bond Girls Are Back – in Iraq – This is the story of American women training Iraqi women to defend their communities.
7. July 2008: Sisters Pilot Afghan Skies – Kelly, Amber and Lacey Smith have a lot in common. Good looks, the same parents, and a love of flying. These three sisters, flying for the Army and the Air Force, had overlapping tours in Afghanistan. Must see pictures.
8. August 2008: Dallas Reporting: Aid Mission to Georgia – We’ve forgotten the Russian invasion of our ally, Georgia, so quickly. We covered that story here at ANSJ and this was the report on the first American vessel to reach a Georgian port.
9. September 2008: Military Integration Into NIMS – Recent reports alarmed some on the left with the “news” that the US Military was being integrated into disaster and WMD attack assistance planning and ops. We reported the real story at ANSJ in September.
10. October 2008: USS Kearsarge Reports on Continuing Promise 2008 – We covered both the Pacific and the Atlantic sides of the Navy’s Operation Continuing Promise 2008 here at ANSJ. This training, aid and assistance mission made friends for the US throughout Latin America.
11. November 2008: Grow Me One of Those! – The US military is heavily involved in biomedical research through the Armed Forces Institute of Regenerative Medicine. We interviewed that agency’s director and discovered the science fiction that is nearly reality.
12. December 2008: Art Out of the Iraqi Desert – Marine Cpl. Vandoan Ndo is making art in the al Anbar desert. He’s turning MRE cartons into paintings that capture the beauty of Iraq.