Thomas Donnelly, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, weighs the future of military vehicles in light of the gutting of the Future Combat Systems program.

Here's his opinion on the Stryker:

"At first glance, the Stryker looks like it might do better in modern warfare. An eight-wheeled vehicle, it has a more efficient engine and can move rapidly. But the Stryker lacks the off-road capability of a tracked vehicle like the Abrams or Bradley. Although it performed beyond expectations in Iraq -- and should as well in Afghanistan, where it is just being introduced -- it can only play a niche role, since its combat capabilities are limited."

Thoughts anyone?

The Article 32 hearing for Pvt. Timothy E. Bennitt, the Fort Lewis soldier accused of supplying his 16-year-old girlfriend with a lethal dose of prescription drugs, will resume Tuesday.

The hearing, the military version of a grand-jury proceeding, had been postponed until June 2 because of scheduling conflicts. No reasoning was given for the change.

Bennitt, a 19-year-old Indiana resident, is charged with involuntary manslaughter and several drug-related offenses. He faces 82 years in prison.

DVIDS provides a touching story about a soldier serving in Iraq and traveling to Mosul to walk on a street named in honor of her brother, Sgt. 1st Class Richard Henkes, a Fort Lewis-based Stryker soldier killed in a roadside bomb attack in September 2006.

From the story:

The next day Bass traveled around the base with her own driver. With his help they found two street signs with her brother's name and stumbled upon a third. Bass laid a charm in the shape of a shield with the verse Joshua 1:9 inscribed on the back at the base of one of the signs. The verse is, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

The Georgia Bulletin has a piece on the fine work the USO does at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. One of the soldiers quotes was Lt. Col. Gary Studniewski, the chaplain of the 555th Engineer Brigade. He's been in The News Tribune in happier times and more mournful occasions. Sounds like he's heading back to Iraq to join the Fort Lewis-based Triple Nickel.

From the story:

Lt. Col. Gary Studniewski is a Catholic priest and brigade chaplain in the Army’s 555th Engineer Brigade. His home base is Washington state, but he was returning to Iraq for several more months. He is a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., but serves in the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA. It ministers to more than 2 million Catholics in the military, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. State Department.

As he passed through Atlanta, he said he was grateful to the Atlanta Archdiocese for recently releasing two of its priests to service as military chaplains—Fathers Kevin Peek and Fred Wendel.

"It’s like coming home," he said about the USO. "The doors are always open. You always feel love and supported."

"The USO is your home to the American service members," said Father Studniewski.

The 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment held its annual memorial ceremony at its home at Fort Campbell, Ky., on Thursday, and honored two soldiers with Washington connections.

The regiment, which has a battalion based at Fort Lewis, added to its memorial the name of Pfc. Blaine N. Adams, who died Nov. 29 following an on-post water survival training. Adams was a MH-47 Chinook helicopter repairer.

"(Adams) was a highly motivated young man and was well thought of highly respected by the Soldiers he served with,” Col. Clayton Hutmacher said in a press release. “Like the others who went before him, he too was an example of courage, commitment and sacrifice."

The regiment also dedicated its aquatics training facility in memory of Sgt. Thomas F. Allison, a 22-year-old Roy resident who was aboard an Army Chinook helicopter that crashed into the Bohol Sea off Negros Island in the southern Philippines on Feb. 22, 2002.