Military

In Washington, confidence often looks like a man walking off a cliff with a plan in his hand, convinced that history will blink first when gravity shows up.

These are badass boats. Combat boats. Even the “luxury” ones are built to go straight from a marina slip into a maritime raid. The catch is this: they are designed to kill drama. They turn chaos into routine and make your worst day on the water feel like a normal Tuesday. When things go wrong, they stay afloat, stay controllable, and keep the crew moving. That is not marketing. That is the point.

Russia battered Kyiv with a winter missile-and-drone strike as Canada announced new Ukraine aid ahead of Florida talks, Thailand and Cambodia moved to lock in a ceasefire, Israel’s recognition of Somaliland sparked a regional flare-up, and Yemen’s south shifted as the STC expanded while the Houthis held the north.

China sanctioned 20 U.S. defense firms and 10 executives over a record Taiwan arms package, Russian “hillbilly armor” got chewed up by Ukrainian drones near Pokrovsk, and the Department of War had to tell troops in Bahrain to stop ordering sexual wellness products that local customs keeps seizing.

The M250 is not the Army polishing an old idea, it is the Army admitting the fight moved out, got tougher, and demands a belt-fed demon that can reach out and make every burst count.

Bombing terrorist organizations is a tactic not a strategy, and SOCAFRICA’s 2015–2017 Gray Zone approach used a long-term, population-focused, partner-enabled campaign that integrated military and non-military efforts to neutralize Boko Haram and ISIS–West Africa by strengthening governance, protecting civilians, and building sustainable regional security.

Armed with amphibious rifles, Russian Spetsnaz turn the waterline into a kill zone instead of a transition point.

The Washington and California National Guards surged forces to manage flooding and mudslide threats as atmospheric rivers hit the West Coast during the holidays. In separate incidents, two officers were critically wounded in a North Carolina custody exchange shootout, and a Washington State Patrol trooper was assaulted and had her cruiser stolen during an I-5 stop before the suspect was captured.

Haunted by the mine blast outside Da Nang in 1968 and the ringing that never stopped, my father carried survivor’s guilt home from Vietnam and spent a lifetime asking the same question: Why Them and Not Me?

Flying at treetop height with cold-war iron and nerves of steel, Ukraine’s Mi-24 crews have turned an aging “Flying Tank” into a blunt instrument of precision and audacity, proving that in this war, skill and nerve still matter more than the calendar on the airframe.

The cold sat with them like an old debt, unpaid and unspoken, while Christmas passed quietly somewhere far enough away to feel almost merciful.

Amidst the surreal backdrop of Cheyanne Mountain, crammed with soldiers in Santa hats tracking the Fat Man for eager callers, I found a unique camaraderie and a poignant reminder of the holiday’s enduring spirit.