On Gonzo Station Part Five (USS Nimitz All-Nuclear Task Group transits Gibraltar en route the Indian Ocean at best speed, December, 1979. They say when the group turned the corner at the Cape of Good Hope the carrier was throwing a rooster-tale. Photo USN). Gentle Readers, this is a Walter Reed Day, and I am […]

December, 1979 I stood on the flight deck this morning to watch the sunrise. It was a sky like a watercolor painting by John Singleton Copley, and the wind was brisk. The pastel colors were perfect. The Marines were doing Jody Calls as they ran around the quarter-mile circuit on the flight deck. It was […]

On Gonzo Station, Part Three Editor’s Note: It is Raven’s birthday, my father having been born August 8, 1923. He would have been 89 this circle around the sun. This is the first of his birthdays he is not here to enjoy. Meanwhile, I am out of the real world, ignoring the endless campaign and […]

(On Gonzo Station, Part Two) 21 November 1979 Editor’s Note: This account was contemporaneous to the events in Iran, 1979-80, and was discovered in the chaotic Socotra archives. Attitudes and descriptions are as they were some 32 years ago, and are preserved only in the interest of historical accuracy. In keeping with the novelty of […]

Anatomy of a Crisis IN THE GULF OF OMAN “USS Midway CV-41 relieved USS Constellation, CV-64 as the Indian Ocean contingency carrier on April 16, 1979. Midway and her escort ships continued a significant American naval presence in the oil-producing region of the Arabian Sea and Persian Gulf. She conducted naval exercises with the RAN […]

(Image of Damascus yesterday as Government forces attempt to crush the last rebels in the capital. Nearly 50 Iranian “pilgrims” were detained not far away. Photo USAToday and AP.)   I got some updates from the Northland yesterday, part of another of the lost weekends that characterize this lost summer. It is high summer there, […]

(The Pahlavi Crown was the crown of the Shahs of Iran.  It was originally crafted for the coronation of Reza Shah on 25 April 1926. To quote Wikipedia, “A staggering 3,380 diamonds, totaling 1,144 carats (229 g), are set into the object. The largest of these is a 60-carat (12 g) yellow brilliant that is […]

(“Reza Pahlavi was born in Tehran, Iran on October 31, 1960 to the late Shah of Iran and Empress Farah Pahlavi. As Crown Prince of Iran and the oldest of four siblings, he left Iran at the age of 17 for Air Force training, during which time the establishment of the clerical regime in Iran […]

(“Hi, Mom!” Members of the Free Syrian Army in the town of Zabadani. Photo Rueters.) U.S. sources familiar with the matter told press sources that President Barack Obama has signed a secret order authorizing US support for rebels seeking to depose Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his brutal government. I don’t know if the ink […]

(Former Saudi Ambassador to the US, Prince Bandar in happier times, before becoming Saudi Intelligence Chief and possible murder victim.) The Presumptive Republican Nominee for President and the sitting (or standing) SECDEF Leon Panetta have been trooping around the Middle East lately. Mitt just got back after a colorful trip to demonstrate his credentials in […]