It sounds a trifle misanthropic, but check out the introduction to the Tactical Corsets. Yes, Tactical Corsets. As in load bearing female underthingies.
“For too long, women have had to compromise practicality for beauty. Men got pants with integrated cargo pockets and knee pads, women got clothes whose only built-in feature was cuteness. But why should men get all the high-speed low-drag tactical toys? Tactical gear is no longer an all boys club. Tactical Corsets bring female operators MILSPEC features like PALS modular pouch attachment webbing, self-adjustable quick-release buckles and Cordura construction in a load-bearing carrier designed to support the female form as well as men. And we’re just getting started…”
They are apparently looking forward to making (no kidding) tactical corsets that provide ballistic protection, using such gel material as the British MoD’s (Ministry of Defense) d30 material. Plus, they are modular. Your favorite fightin’ wench can add mag pouches or a hydration pouch or whatever you want. That ought to make it more interesting at a Steampunk gathering or rave, eh?
“Lace has grace but buckles are quick release.”
We like it, leather and kevlar clad beauties. We like it. Go forth and conquer.
TFB has been advised there are still a couple of Tac Girls available for sponsorship at SHOT, if you want to put your booth on the map (and give it some interesting eye candy). Several of them are already assigned to booths, largely those of manufacturers who help the calendar shoots with gear or just moral support. DSA, American Snipers, Armalite and some others will have a Tac Girl as their tactically hawt one-woman QRF. If you would like to recruit one for your booth or organization, contact Tac Girls.
Now, you only get to have her there to help out at the booth. You don’t get to keep her or take her home. Sorry fellas.
Forget the Kryron Terminator Armor System or Dragonskin…the future of head to toe full body armor is here, and it looks eerily familiar. Engineering technician Leonard Carson woks for San Diego Composites. He convinced some of his buddies at work to help with his dream of creating actual storm trooper armor out of carbon fiber. Apparently they were all big Star Wars fans, so it was a pretty easy sell. Now, in fairness we’re not actually saying this armor provides ballistic protection (nor do they claim it) but it’s certainly pretty kewl to look at and who knows? Maybe some day a fully articulated, lightweight, serviceable set of real level IV body armor will be available. Then when SWAT teams go in after an armed and barricaded suspect they can play some good music over the same loudspeakers they were previously using to make announcements. (“Suspect inside the residence at 1616 S. Walnut, this is the police. You have five more minutes to lay down your weapon and walk onto the front porch with your hands in the air…n0? Okay Bull, cue the orchestra!”)
TIE Tactical (Tactical Innovations Engineering) has a new tiger strip pattern out. TIE makes some really nice custom kydex scabbards and sheaths for both fixed blades and folders (and of course some other things).
A TIE Tactical hatchet scabbard with belt lock for carry.
It’s not something you might think about right off, but they make some really nice belt scabbards even for folders. There are a number of reasons for this, including speed of presentation, carrying it on a battle belt, carrying a secondary folder, etc. The defensive/tactical reasons vary from individual, and will no doubt start more than one argument about what is valid, or a better way to carry, or whatever. This e-publication, perspicacious and sagacious as it is, will not get into that argument. We will going to say that TIE is run by an extremely nice, very detail-oriented and thorough man out of a small shop in Texas. He has a dual retention locking system if you want it (and these these things really do lock: you can carry ’em inverted and they’ll stay with you). He can make a number of different pieces you might want: for instance, we know of one commissioned project that involved a 5-round .38 speedloader for an airweight revolver sitting right next to a very small flashlight. Another was a small fixed blade (a SAR Global Tool Sarclops, as a matter of fact) next to a Zippo…you get the idea. He’s got the tools and he’s got the talent, and now he’s got the tiger stripe.
We got the word from the gentlemen guys over at Spartan Imports that the upcoming Magpul PTS Masada AKM (an airsoft replica of the 7.62 x 39mm variant of the Magpul Masada) is on the way and will be available in time for Christmas. If you’re into MilSim at all you probably already know who Spartan is, but if not then you should check them out. They’re a family operated MilSim Airsoft operation out west (in California, in fact, though try not to hold that against them). They are the sole authorized distributors of PTS by Magpul: PTS is Professional Training & Simulation, which was established in 2007 to meet the high demand for airsoft-compatible Magpul accessories. For those of you who use airsoft weaponry as a training tool, this allows for realistic and accurate weapons and attachments for your scenarios and other training iterations. Of course, they look good for civilian sport use too. As Magpul says, “By maintaining the same basic form and function as Magpul weapon components, PTS equipment allows users to safely practice drills and perform scenarios without the use of live weapons or ammunition.”
Spartan Imports is the only US distributor of Magpul PTS products (including all accessories, the ACR /Advanced Combat Rifle, and the FPG/Folding Pocket Gun). Now, these guyscan be overachievers…personally we blame the boss, though it’s entirely possible his little brother is equally to blame. Anyway, because of that you have several related Facebook pages to check out:
Here are some pictures of PTS furniture on a good training weapon. Stay tuned if you want to see some info and pictures of the Masada (they’re already carrying rails and some other pieces for it). There are a few out but we’ve been promised some additional shots. More to follow. Here are some shots of the Magpul Professional Training & Simulation kit:
General Allen (command of ISAF, and U.S. Forces Afghanistan/USFOR-A) was recently interviewed on TOLO Television News in Afghanistan, if you’re interested in watching it.
According to Afghan informational websites, Tolo TV (“Sunrise” or “Dawn” in Dari and Pashto) is the name of a television service broadcasted from Kabul, Afghanistan. The service broadcasts news and general entertainment programs. The owner is Saad Mohseni who became an Australian citizen, and has now returned to Kabul. Tolo was launched on October 2004, as the first commercial television station to operate in Afghanistan and is a leading private TV channel in Afghanistan (now broadcasting in 14 cities on free-to-air and throughout the region by satellite). It was started in 2004 and produces and broadcasts “AfghanStar”, one of Afghanistan’s most popular television series (very similar to American Idol). The show has drawn criticism and threats of violence from religious conservatives and security has been increased around the show. (Recently one of the station’s female VJs, a woman named Shiama Reziaee, was murdered after receiving threats for her un-Islamic behavior. In November 2007, the channel received warnings from Muslim clerics and the Culture Ministry for broadcasting a concert of singer Shakira.)
Despite widespread conversation that the new Battlefield 3 was superior to the new Modern Warfare 3 (this isn’t to open up an argument, just going with the preponderance of input we’ve received), Activision Publishing announced on Friday that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has set an all-time sales record. How much? An estimated 6.5 million copies sold in North America and the United Kingdom alone. It also registered more than $400 million in sales. This is the third consecutive day-one launch record for the company, following the releases of Call of Duty: Black Ops ($360 million) and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 ($310 million). Read on for more.
Looks like there’s a new trailer out for the Acts of Valor movie, which you may recall stars real, active duty Navy SEALs in “fictitious accounts based on real world operational missions”. The first trailer looked bad ass. This one looks just as sweet, and we have to presume that barring OPSEC necessities the weapon handling and capabilities are about as realistic as they come. (If not, you have to assume it’s intentional, right?) This new trailer debuted during the Carrier Classic on Veteran’s Day.
Tactical life ran a great (if too short) piece today on graffiti in the AOR. It’s a funny change from the gang graffiti or anti-American scrawls. The funniest one we’ve seen to date was in ’06. One of your eee-light team of tactical bloggers saw a bombed out Iraqi T-72 (God only knows how long it had been there) on the way toward the Ziggurat of Ur that read “Chuck Norris was here.” On a more serious note, you might also be interested in the Graffiti of War Project, it’s seriously cool…in fact, if you aren’t familiar with it, go there now (the picture below came from that site and that project). It’s a great cause and has incredible art from our boys and girls on the ground.
The FBI has taken down a huge botnet, it’s being called the biggest cybercriminal takedown in history. Four million computers involved. Basically a botnet from Estonia (which may have the dubious distinction of being the first country attacked in cyberwarfare a few years back) was highjacking the DNS settings of victim computers so it could control where victim computers would be sent to. DNS, aka: Domain Name System, is what tells your computer where Internet and network resources are. You type in www.google.com and through DNS, your computer finds out the IP address that is used by www.google.com. So if you control what location information is sent to computers then you can direct them where you actually want them to go e.g. porn sites, sites selling malicious software posing as security applications, phishing websites, etc.
The month of May is named for the Greek goddess Maia, and goddess may be apropos here once you read and see the Tac Girl for May. May is unique; no other month begins on the same day of the week as May. Christina is a unique sort of beauty. She is hot of course (duh) but she’s also a shooting black belt with a BA degree and a penchant both for triathlons and pageants. Join us in appreciating this particularly compelling page of the calender!
INTREP, CHRISTINA G, MAY TAC-GIRL (1 EA)
Bust: Ample Waist: 26 Hips: 32
Height: 5’2”
Christina G: a 32DD beauty with a black belt and a BA degree who likes the .45. What’s not to love?
Tactics: dynamic entry or deliberate search?Dynamic entry
Rough it in the field or Creature Comforts and Snivel Kit?Lifting weights, followed by crossfit
Boy shorts, Thong, Cheeky or Go Commando?Not tellin’
Long-Term Professional Goal?To be #1 😀
Hunting, fishing, hiking, camping or hell no I’m staying indoors?I love anything outdoors
Favorite sport/team?Does couple skating and dancing count? J
Favorite military or action movie?Braveheart
Military or Police in your family?Military
What do you think is the best pogie bait? Original skittles J
Favorite camouflage?“Snow colored” J
Justice League, Avengers, X-Men, other or hell no I’m not a dork?Avengers
Fixed Blade or Folder? Fixed blade
One of the guys from Frontline or History Channel with a cool voice is talking about you in a bio. What does he say?
Our beloved Miss May loves the outdoors: anything from horseriding to hiking, to camping. She has a BA degree and works in the fitness industry as a personal trainer and a group fitness instructor. She enjoys teaching everything from Zumba, yoga, pilates to Kickboxing. She is very active and loves life. She completed her first Sprint Triathlon last fall, is working on her 3rd degree black belt for next year along with doing some more modeling.
When you go to buy your calendar, enter code TGC-MJ-12 to get your discount!
You wouldn’t think this would go well…but it actually came out of there and went to shootin’. Long story, one maybe we’ll share someday. Thanks to the rifle-shootin’-est Texans we know, the crew at Legion Firearms, for letting us use their picture.
Note: we do not recommend or endorse this particular cleaning procedure, nor do we think many NCOs would be terribly appreciative of it were they to catch you trying it. That being said, if you do then send us a picture. Meantime, go check Legion out on Facebook. Remember in ‘Back to the Future’ when he said, “You built a time machine out of a Delorean?” It’s kind of like that, except they build high end burners that are at the top of the food chain when it comes to laying some hate on armed assailants, tawl-ee-bawn, goat-loving insurgents and hippies.
The production model Gilboa APR (Assault Pistol Rifle, whatever that means) is out and about. Great new PDW or not…unsure, though the Israelis certainly have some good stuff. Anyway, the original article is over on BOLO Report. The picture below is courtesy of Doubletapper.
Back in May we featured a video that showed a female shooter deploying a concealed pistol from a holster carried in her bra.
Remember the Flashbang Bra Holster? Well, Natalie of Girls Guide to Guns wrote a very nice, very candid review of said holster, hitting about every point we could think of that might count against it (being serious here, not making obligatory boob jokes yet). If you are a female shooter that carries concealed, you might very well want to look into this. We like this girl. She has a great sense of humor and obviously knows what she’s talking about.
To get this out of the way: no, you will not see any delightfully jiggly naughty bits if a girl goes to drag iron on you. Frankly, it that happens you may have something else entirely to worry about.
Here’s an excerpt:
“Another concern I had was whether the Flashbang would work with tight shirts. Before using the holster I thought the expectation that I could hide a gun between the bazooms was completely unrealistic. There would have to be some give away, right? So I tested it. Boldly. After receiving a total of zero awkward comments from friends about that thing hiding in my rack, I concluded that I was in the clear. Boyfriend later confirmed that fact when I asked him specifically if he had noticed anything odd in the aforementioned location…Now that I had the visibility question answered, it was time for the trickiest of the concealed tests. I wanted to know if the gun would reveal it’s placement when I hugged someone. After eating lunch one day with my friend, Scott, I decided it was time to find out. As we said goodbye I intentionally gave him a big old full-frontal hug. “Did you feel it?” I asked. “Feel what?” he responded. Question answered. Thanks, Scott. Bless his heart, he’s probably still scratching his head about that one.
Some of our readers have inquired as to how these things work for my sidearm sisters who are a bit smaller chested than myself. I wanted to be sure that my A and B cup friends don’t feel left out so I asked a B cup friend of mine to try it on and see what she thought. She had on a pretty fitted top and we were both impressed by the fact that the Flashbang was just as discreet on her as it is on me. Incidentally, who ever thought a firearms product test would include staring at eachother’s boobs? I can’t help but think that somewhere out there Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are finding this hilarious…”
Some of our military friends have let us know that the American Mustache Institute wants to honor mustached US veterans this Friday. Yes, it sounds a little silly (and it is) but it’s funny too. They have a sense of humor that will resonate with military personnel and a reasonable lack of propriety. Anyway, they’d like to run a picture of the hairy-lipped veteran along with a vignette. That can be a personal recollection by the veteran himself (hopefully not herself) of it can be a 3RD person tribute to a friend, NCO, commander, spouse, brother, whatever. Needs to have a picture featuring that mustache!
“We want to take advantage of any opportunity we have to honor our military personnel and feature them on our site,” says Aaron Perlut of the American Mustache Institute. “Friend, coworkers, comrades in arms, spouse. Just have them e-mail me at info@americanmustacheinstitute.org.”
Please get submissions in by this Thursday, 1900 EST.
(Pictures: Col. Lewis Millet, retired, who earned the Silver Star in WWII and the Medal of Honor in Korea. A valorous man. Doubtful anyone could get away with such a mustache these days.)
So we’re going to introduce a recurring feature here on TFB. Not sure how often if will actually appear, but if it happens once in a while it’s still recurring right? Anyway, here’s the first installment of Songs of War. If you have any suggestion for future topics, put ’em in the topics section or shoot us an e-mail.
We’re not sure if it’s just the song and the eerie music, the singer’s voice or the movie and real-world events it calls to mind, but we love it. (If you haven’t heard Rachid Taha, his voice—live or in the studio—is a strangely compelling thing reminiscent of too many cigarettes, an old school NCO, the haunting yells of leather-faced men in dusty souks just as evening sets in or perhaps mostly just a motivated grunt five minutes after last call and two hours after seizing control of the karaoke machine.)
If you’ve been living in a box or have recently decided to leave your Amish roots behind, Rachid Taha is an Algerian who gained a lot of notice here in the U.S. when one of his songs was included on the Blackhawk Down album. Here’s the video, and below it are the lyrics as best we can tell (not being any more conversant with Arabic than Imshi, Kef!, Isteslem and the like).
Hope you enjoy it as much as we do. When we do the Mad Duo movie Rachid Taha will be on the soundtrack fo’ sho’.
Here’s the live version:
Barra Barra
(Outside outside)
Sadness, hate and the reign of arbitrary
Outside Outside
Destruction, jealousy ; there is no trust left
Outside Outside
Thirst and people are unlucky
Outside Outside
No honor, but oppression and slavery
Outside Outside
Rivers were dried up and seas have ruined everything
Outside Outside
Stars are switched off and the sun went down
Outside Outside
There are no trees left and the birds stopped singing
Outside Outside
There are neither days, nor nights left, darkness only
Outside Outside
Hell; there is no beauty left
Outside Outside
Outside Outside
Time has increased, there is no honor left
Outside Outside
Ruin and war and the blood is flowing
Outside Outside
There are only walls left, walls standing up
Outside Outside
Fear and people remain silent
Outside Outside
Sadness, hate and the reign of arbitrary
Outside Outside
Destruction and jealousy ; there is no trust left
Outside Outside
Rivers were dried up and seas have ruined everything
Outside Outside
stars are switched off and the sun went down
Outside Outside
Outside Outside
There is neither good, nor happiness, nor luck anymore
Outside Outside
There are no trees left; the birds stopped singing
Outside Outside
There are neither nights, nor days left; darkness only
Outside Outside
Desolation, hell, there is no beauty left
Outside Outside
(Silence)
Outside Outside
Time has increased, there is no honor left
Outside Outside
Ruin and war and the blood is flowing
Outside Outside
There are only walls left, walls standing up
Outside Outside
Sadness, hate and the reign of arbitrary
Outside Outside
Destruction and jealousy ; there is no trust left.
Stars are switched off, and the sun went down
Outside Outside
There is neither good, nor happiness, nor luck left
Outside Outside
There are no trees left ; birds stopped singing
Outside Outside
There are no neither nights nor days left; darkness only
Outside Outside
Desolation, hell, there is no beauty left
Outside Outside
Time has increased, there is no honor left
Grinch, Truck, Frost and Sandman. According to Dalton Fury (who should know), the beepers have gone off again. Modern Warfare 3’s Delta Assaulters this time around are Metal Team. Stand by for further as it becomes available. (If you haven’t checked out the new Black Site book by DF, you prob’ly oughta.)
Love this bumper sticker. Of course, you’d be far better off sporting it here CONUS that you would on the back of one of the ubiquitous little white pickups or checkered taxis in Iraq. It’d be really cool on a jingle truck, but it wouldn’t be as funny because of the language. Guess it might look okay on the back of a jundi gun truck if they really had a sense of humor.
Dr. Danger either had brass balls or was just colossally stupid. He also doesn’t know the difference between a Ma Deuce and a submachine gun, though we won’t quibble. Have you seen the Dr. Danger series yet from MOJO? It’s crazy.
“You don’t want to rent a car [at Bali Doogle]. You want to rent an army.”
One of our friends in the Italian military sent us this striking of two Italian military personnel, apparently from the “unofficial” TF 45, showing two men helping their wounded comrade (apparently to CASEVAC). Our understanding was the picture was taken somewhere in the region of Shahr-E-Herat, Afghanistan. There’s no way to be sure and it wouldn’t be appropriate to go into too many details anyway. (We wouldn’t even be posting the picture itself if it wasn’t already circulating on Facebook.) They may by Gruppo Intervento Speciale of the Carbinieri. We’re not sure and there’s no way to know for sure. Here’s one thing that’s certain: we appreciate their help in the Coalition and we hope the WIA in the center recovers fully.
This has got to resonate with some salty dawgs out there. Whether you’re an NCO or maybe a crusty old member of the tac team…this is going to make you sniff, touch your cheek and think…I remember those snot-nosed little fellers…they turned out all right. Likin’ the actors too.
Maybe you’ve read his book, maybe not (if not, you should fix that). The former Delta commander, OIC of the first efforts to track down UBL right after 9/11, frequently posts updates about his upcoming work of fiction on his Facebook page, and once in a while he releases his “Leadership Secrets”. They’re worth reading, and by and large can apply to the civilian world as well as that of the military. Here’s the most recent one:
DF Leadership Secret #10: You Can’t Determine Your Own Success.
The men and women you lead determine this for you. If they are successful, then you are successful. Your stake holders will recognize it; your commanding officer will recognize it.
Just prior to taking command of an infantry rifle company a former battalion commander of mine sent me a personal note – “Now is the time to pay back all the people that got you where you are now, by ensuring their success”. I kept the note under the glass on my desk at work and read it literally every day.
Years later I was in a musky safe house with a couple other special operators in a bombed-out Balkan slum when I received a message to call my boss. I reached him on the satellite phone within the hour and he passed on that I had been selected for promotion below-the-zone, essentially ahead of 95% of my peers, to the next rank. I was shocked, totally humbled, and quite embarrassed actually. I hung up the phone and tried to play it off with the guys around me, but they didn’t fool easily.
So, there I was, a fairly new Delta officer, the boss of a classified real-world mission, with the unenvious task of having to tell my men – who I barely knew at the time – that I was some hot-shot officer that some Department of the Army board decided needed to be promoted earlier than most of the other guys.
At that moment, with an early 90s era life-size poster of teeny-bopper Brittany Spears hanging on the wall, the only thing I could do was laugh at the absurdity of the situation, admit that the board members must have made a big mistake, and try to refocus the conversation back to the mission. But inside, I intuitively knew that my former battalion commander had been spot on. I mentally checked off the countless soldiers and sergeants, peer officers, and the talented and caring superiors I was so fortunate enough to have served with, to have learned from, and to have ultimately benefited from. Incidentally, I don’t recall any of those earlier influences and great Americans being former Tier I operators…which says a ton about the modern day American soldier.
Today is the 60th anniversary of the first Marine Corps confirmed kill of a MiG during the Korean War. On 04 November, 1951, flying with the 336TH FIS, under the Fifth Air Force, Capt. William F. Guss USMC became the first Gyrene to shoot down a Russian built MiG-15. He was flying an F-86 Sabre. This was during a time when jet vs. jet combat was a relatively new thing. Close Air Support and other missions were still be flown by Marines in Corsairs and Skyraiders, a “night fighter” such as the Tigercat was a brand new idea and casualties were often flown out in TBM Avengers.
Major General Al Flowers retires today after forty-six years in the military. The longest tenured active-duty service member in the Air Force and the longest-serving active duty black American in the Defense Department’s entire sixty year history. He started out working in a warehouse, collected the bodies of KIAs in Vietnam and is now the Air Force Budget Director….for just a few more hours.
God speed, General, thank you for your service. Enjoy your retirement, you’ve earned it.
The 2011 New York Custom Knife Show is fast approaching (18, 19 and 20 November). If you’re close enough to get by there, you should check it out. There’ll be a few dozen of the best knifemakers around. It’s going to be at the Westin-Jersey City Newport (479 Washington Blvd.Jersey City, NJ 07310). It’ll run Friday from 1300 to 1800, Saturday from 1000 to 1800 and Sunday from 0900 to 1500. There are a number of prizes scheduled to be given away. Full information on the 2011 NYCKS website.
There will be a lot of really talented knifemakers there, including three of our favorites:
