Military Officer - April 2008 - (Page 28) rapidfire Retiree Spotlight C ol. George Singleton, USAFRRet., chairs the Legislative Affairs Committee of MOAA’s Birmingham (Ala.) Chapter. He served six years on active duty in the Air Force and 25 years in the Air Force Reserve. In recent years, he has been a man on a mission. “I’ve seen the children of good friends come home from Iraq and Afghanistan with devastating, life-changing injuries,” says Singleton. “There is more we can do to protect our young men and women in harm’s way.” Can you share a few highlights from your military career? There were many. But among my best experiences was the time I spent as a junior officer in 1963 to 1965 at the old U.S. Embassy in Karachi, Pakistan, where I was the liaison officer for our Peshawar communications intel and U-2 base. I made lifelong friends there. And while in the reserves, a highlight was working to conceptualize and develop computerized wargaming systems with U.S. Special Operations Command. Tell us about your life as a retiree. I’m a three-time retiree. I retired from the Air Force, from the field of international banking, [and] from the U.S. Civil Service. I continue to work in real estate. You also have an interesting hobby. Since the Sept. 11, 2001, attack, I’ve had 100 letters published overseas [in an] effort to share the U.S. perspective with those who otherwise don’t have the opportunity to hear or understand it. To win the war on terrorism, we must combat the propaganda monster of Al-Jazeera, which is streamed to people in the Middle East and Southwest Asia. Have you had success? Yes. I’ve received increased feedback from native people in these countries telling me they don’t agree with the terrorists. But, there is more we can do. The most important tool we have if we are to wage a successful propaganda war is the Voice of America (VOA). We must see a revival of this broadcast outlet with TV and radio broadcasts in [the Middle East and Southwest Asia] so VOA has the same presence as Al-Jazeera. There is truly untapped potential with VOA. What do you think? Can the VOA be revitalized to have a stronger influence in the war on terrorism? Visit www.moaa .org/discussion and click on VOA. — Ellen N. Woods Attention! Check out these military-related entertainment offerings. BOOK: War on Two Fronts: An Infantry Commander’s War in Iraq and the Pentagon (Casemate, 2007) Col. Christopher Hughes, USA, describes the tension of commanding modern war28 MILITARY OFFICER fare, his experiences since America’s invasion of Iraq, and the culture of the Pentagon in Arlington, Va. DVD: Operation Homecoming (Docurama Films, 2007) This documentary explores the firsthand accounts of American troops through their own written words and offers a profound window into the sometimes overlooked human side of the war in Iraq. BOOK: Strange But True Facts of the Civil War (Taylor Trade Publishing, 2007) Patrick Reynolds has compiled a list of hundreds of little-known facts about the Civil War, intermingled with illustrations. MO PHOTO: STEVE BARRETT APRIL 2008
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