Newsletter & Updates
America’s Frontlines is off to a great start. We’ve had some great interviews and discussions and there’s no shortage of topics that we need to discuss. I welcome your input on interviews we’ve done or ones we should do. Feel free to contact me at Denny@AmericasFrontlines.com.
Did you know that our nation is concerned with the Iranian terrorist proxy Hezbollah’s activities in Latin America? They established a presence there over 40 years ago. Our State Department recently said that it was seeking “information leading to the disruption of the financial mechanism” of Hezbollah—particularly in the tri-border area of Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil. There are indications that the bombing attacks on Argentina in the 1990s were prepared and financed from there. A Mexican finance expert agreed as the area has many money exchange houses and very little authority.
And, Hezbollah has helped facilitate a strong relationship between Venezuela and Iran. Indeed, remember when Israel indirectly provided some pagers that would explode to the terrorist groups. Many Hezbollah terrorists move to, yes, Venezuela.
And two US Senators, John Curtis (R-Utah) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev) introduced a bill called the No Hezbollah in Our Hemisphere Act. It demanded that Latin American nations “put an end to the impunity enjoyed by designated individuals and entities or face the consequences” described in the bill.
Here’s a challenge that needs to be dealt with—in addition to all the other challenges our nation is facing now. At least we have leadership that is actually acting to fix things, but there’s no such thing as a quick fix.
And, in an unusually candid moment, while speaking to a small group of journalists before a Security Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made something crystal clear: Israel’s upcoming operation in Gaza is not about permanent occupation.
The goal is to dismantle Hamas’s war machine and, then hand administrative control to reliable international partners — trusted Arab states that understand the stakes.
This is a strategic shift. Israel will remain only where necessary to ensure that Gaza can’t ever again serve as a launchpad for terror. This decision comes after 672 days of war — days marked by courage, sacrifice and national resilience, but also by deep wounds: tens of thousands injured, many psychologically scarred, families shattered, an economy under strain and a rising tide of antisemitism at home and abroad.
The cabinet debate that led to this decision was fierce but ultimately unified. Netanyahu was determined to send in IDF forces to Gaza City and areas in the Gaza Strip not under Israeli control. Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir urged a more cautious approach, surrounding the remaining terror strongholds to protect the hostages’ lives.
Reality has forced Israel’s hand: Hamas has flatly refused to release the captives. Those skeletal men, women, and children can’t wait. Israel cannot permit Hamas to continue torturing them to death, nor to keep plotting the next Oct. 7 from the tunnels of Gaza.
As Secretary of State Marco Rubio put it bluntly: “As long as Hamas exists as an armed group in Gaza, there will not be a peace; there will not be a peaceful future because it’s going to happen again, and this can never happen again.”
Washington understands this. Unlike Europe, which continues to wring its hands and pressure Israel, we have chosen to work alongside the Jewish state toward ending the war on terms that secure its people.
Our nation has a large number of challenges and some very good people at the top of our government, but we have a lot to do to maintain our nation as the world’s finest country.
The Smiling Ranger
I’ll never forget that, I was thinking about…, the fact that after really messing up academically during my first year at Junior College, I enrolled at New Mexico Military Institute (NMMI) in Roswell, NM. My goal was to get focused and get my academics back to where they should be. We lived in barracks and wore uniforms everywhere; it was the environment I needed. Our barracks was a hollow square with all cadet rooms entered from the inside of the square; we had formations in the center of the square. One of my classmates was from Hawaii. He made it clear that he’d never been in snow and was nervous about walking and moving in it. Of course, it snowed that winter, and the first morning that we had snow a bunch of us charged in his room, grabbed him (he was in his underwear) and drug him outside and threw him in a snow-bank. Fortunately for all of us, after the first shock, he laughed as much as we did. And, since he was laughing, we allowed him to return to his room.
Military History
On 18 Aug 1812, returning from a cruise into Canadian waters Captain Isaac Hull’s USS Constitution of the fledgling US Navy encountered British Captain Richard Dacre’s HMS Guerriere about 750 miles out of Boston. After a frenzied 55-minute battle that left 101 dead, Guerriere rolled helplessly in the water, smashed beyond salvage. Dacre struck his colors and surrendered to Hull’s boarding party. In contrast, Constitution suffered little damage and only 14 casualties. The fight’s outcome shocked the British Admiralty while it heartened America through the dark days of the War of 1812.
On 24 Aug 1814, during the War of 1812, British forces under General Robert Ross overwhelmed American militiamen at the Battle of Bladensburg, Maryland, and marched unopposed into Washington, DC. Most congressmen and officials fled the nation’s capital as soon as word came of the American defeat, but President James Madison and his wife, Dolley, escaped just before the invaders arrived. Earlier in the day, President Madison had been present at the Battle of Bladensburg and had at one point actually taken command of one of the few remaining American batteries, thus becoming the first and only president to exercise in actual battle his authority as commander in chief.
On 23 Aug 1864, during Our Civil War, the Geneva Convention of 1864 for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick of Armies in the Field was adopted by 12 nations meeting in Geneva. The agreement, advocated by Swiss humanitarian Jean-Henri Dunant, called for nonpartisan care to the sick and wounded in times of war and provided for the neutrality of medical personnel. It also proposed the use of an international emblem to mark medical personnel and supplies. In honor of Dunant’s nationality, a red cross on a white background–the Swiss flag in reverse–was chosen. In 1901, Dunant was awarded the first Nobel Peace Prize. In 1881, American humanitarians Clara Barton and Adolphus Solomons founded the American National Red Cross, an organization designed to provide humanitarian aid to victims of wars and natural disasters in congruence with the International Red Cross.
On 25 Aug 1944, during WWII, after over four years of Nazi occupation, Paris was liberated by the French 2nd Armored Division and the US 4th Infantry Division. German resistance was light, and General Dietrich von Choltitz, commander of the German garrison, defied an order by Adolf Hitler to blow up Paris’ landmarks and burn the city to the ground before its liberation. Choltitz signed a formal surrender that afternoon, and on August 26, Free French General Charles de Gaulle led a joyous liberation march down the Champs d’Elysees.
On 29 Aug 1916, Congress provided for the first time the mobilization of the Lighthouse Service in time of war by authorizing the President, “…whenever in his judgment a sufficient national emergency exists, to transfer to the service and jurisdiction of the Navy Department, or of the War Department, such vessels, equipment, stations and personnel of the Lighthouse Service as he may deem to the best interest of the country.”
On 27 Aug 1945, the Allied fleets anchored in Tokyo Bay within sight of Mount Fujiyama. Admiral Halsey, commander of the US 3rd Fleet, was present for what was probably the greatest display of naval might in history. The armada included 23 aircraft carriers, 12 battleships, 26 cruisers, 116 destroyers and escorts, 12 submarines and 185 other vessels. In addition to the American and British ships, there were ships from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the Netherlands represented.
On 30 Aug 1945, Gen. Douglas MacArthur landed in Japan to oversee the formal surrender ceremony and to organize the postwar Japanese government.
On 19 Aug 1960, in the USSR, captured American U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for his confessed espionage. On May 1, 1960, Powers took off from Pakistan at the controls of an ultra-sophisticated Lockheed U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft. A CIA-employed pilot, he was to fly over some 2,000 miles of Soviet territory to BodØ military airfield in Norway, collecting intelligence information en route. Roughly halfway through his journey, he was shot down by the Soviets in the Ural Mountains. Forced to bail out at 15,000 feet, he survived the parachute jump but was promptly arrested by Soviet authorities.
Humor/Puns
Me: I’m still tired from all the crossfit this morning. Coworker: It’s pronounced croissant, and you just ate 4 of them.
The CEO of IKEA was elected Prime Minister of Sweden. He should have his cabinet assembled by the end of the month.
I went to a water park and tried the water slide. I’m afraid I’m getting addicted to it; it’s a slippery slope.
A truckload of Lego bricks overturned on the freeway. Police say they don’t know what to make of it.
How do you tell the gender of an ant? Put it in a glass of water. If it sinks it’s a girl; if it floats it’s buoyant.
How does a penguin build his house? Igloos it together.
What do you call a hot day in Canada? Nova Scorcha.
What’s the best part of a pregnancy joke? The delivery.
What if soy milk is just regular milk…introducing itself in Spanish?
President Trump will ban shredded cheese. He wants to make America grate again.
A shipment of jelly was spilled on the highway; I was stuck in a traffic jam.
A man walks into an enchanted forest and tries to cut down a talking tree. “You can’t cut me down,” the tree exclaims, “I’m a talking tree!” The man responds, “You may be a talking tree, but you will dialogue.”
Quote/Verse
Galatians 6:9
And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.