The Aiming Circle

Cutting the head off the Soviet chicken "By Dawn's Early Light" (1990): a contrived, late-Cold War, made-for-TV nuclear thriller

This week I watched HBO’s 1990 made-for-TV nuclear thriller “By Dawn’s Early Light” so that you don’t have to. You can make my sacrifice of 100 minutes of a finite life feel worthwhile by reading my DOOMSDAY MACHINES post about it: doomsdaymachines.net/p/cutting-th...

What It Will Take to Change the Regime in Iran The U.S. military must go big—and then let Iranians do the rest.

“If regular protests resume in Iran, American military power could level the playing field between the street and the state, giving the country’s demonstrators a chance to succeed,” writes Behnam Ben Taleblu.

Scouting America will alter its policies to maintain support from the US military, Pentagon says Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says Scouting America will alter several policies to maintain its support from the U.S. military.

It's genuinely kind of funny that the Scouts made these changes to try to move on and financially recover from being completely infested by pedophiles and Hegseth is like, "We must retvrn to the old ways!" apnews.com/article/scou...

Celebrity chef says he’ll be the ‘bat’ to enforce quality at new Army dining halls Chef Robert Irvine says he’s been getting regular data readouts showing how many soldiers are eating at the new dining halls and what they’re ordering.

Celebrity chef says he’ll be the ‘bat’ to enforce quality at new Army dining halls www.militarytimes.com/news/your-mi...

It’s a partisan, right wing affectation - like “Warrior”, it mentally and ethically separates soldiers from the law - that’s been around for decades, but you have a true believer leading the Pentagon and the building has adopted his speaking and writing style.

It’s absolutely more common than ever.

US military uses laser to take down CBP drone, lawmakers say The case of mistaken identity prompted the FAA to close additional airspace around Fort Hancock, about 50 miles southeast of El Paso.

The case of mistaken identity prompted the FAA to close additional airspace around Fort Hancock, about 50 miles southeast of El Paso.

A Round-up of Our February 2026 Coverage! The Aiming Circle is a patron-funded community of practice , serving writers of military-themed essays, analysis, literary and journalistic ...

3/3 ("Rounds complete!") Aiming Circle stories:
www.aimingcircle.com/2026/02/a-ro...

* 2026 AUSA "Powerful Prose" Workshop Videos Now Available

* FREE Veterans Music & Poetry Workshop Starts Feb. 6, 2026

A Round-up of Our February 2026 Coverage! The Aiming Circle is a patron-funded community of practice , serving writers of military-themed essays, analysis, literary and journalistic ...

2/3 FEB26 Aiming Circle stories con't:
www.aimingcircle.com/2026/02/a-ro...

* "FICINT" Stories to Feature Monthly at Defense Website

* On-line N.C. Veterans Writing Workshop starts Mar. 4, 2026

* Mil-Fiction Publisher Announces 3rd Annual 'High-Caliber' Novella Awards

Here’s our latest salvo of RESOURCES, TIPS, and MARKETS for writers of military- & war-themed fiction, non-fiction, poetry, scholarship, and more!

Links:
www.aimingcircle.com/2026/02/a-ro...

* FREE On-line Workshop with Author Matt Gallagher

* Sword & Sorcery Market Gains Another Magazine

1/3

This is not a military that is in any shape to launch a successful invasion of anyone.

Though that consideration did not of course stop Putin from attacking Ukraine or Trump's pondering of an attack on Iran.

Trump’s mass deportation as forever war. Unfortunately fitting analogy. The militarized War on Drugs is too. With all the problems that entails.

Except terrorism and drugs are real dangers, and immigrants are not.

In other words, the problem isn’t just ICE. It’s the growing ICE-industrial complex.

The Pentagon’s Dangerous Adoption of AI Using commercial LLMs in military settings creates new threats and amplifies old ones.

"Using commercial LLMs in military settings creates new threats and amplifies old ones." | Emma Isabella Sage

https://thedispatch.com/article/pentagon-grok-anthropic-artificial-intelligence/

VA Secretary Collins Is Wrong About Veteran Suicide Prevention Funding - The American Prospect These programs save lives, every day.

Worth reading!

We've been covering the long push to get Williams the Medal of Honor. Here's the backstory. A genuinely wild story
taskandpurpose.com/news/royce-w...

BOTH VOLUMES NOW ON @bookshop.org & other "non-'Zon" booksellers !!!

Prize-winning reads for those who serve, and those whose lives are touched by military service!

“Our Best War Stories”
- VOL. 1: bookshop.org/a/102773/978...
- VOL. 2: bookshop.org/a/102773/978...

What I Saw at the Battle of Minneapolis The national media has moved on. Minnesota is still under siege.

The national news media has moved on. But Minnesota is still under siege.

By Jonathan V. Last

www.thebulwark.com/p/what-i-saw...

One of the first things we were taught at Quantico was that there is never a moment in which you are not representing the Bureau; but, then again, we earned our place there, and weren’t granted its directorship as a sinecure for partisan malfeasance and a willingness to disregard the constitution.

Russia's Eliminationist Rhetoric Against Ukraine: A Collection Updated: Key words, phrases, and themes appear to express intent to eliminate Ukraine or Ukrainians as a nation-state, people, or culture.

The latest eliminationist/genocidal rhetoric by top Russian officials and associates against #Ukraine and Ukrainians.

From Medvedev, Slutsky, Solovyov and others.

Follow our tracker updates:

#RussiaUkraineWar

www.justsecurity.org/81789/russia...

The U.S killed three more people in a boat strike in the Caribbean yesterday. The toll of these these extrajudicial killings
now exceeds 150 people.

All known attacks are chronicled in our tracker, @theintercept.com

theintercept.com/2025/11/17/t...

Trump Demanded El Mencho’s Head. Mexicans Are Paying the Price. The violence in Mexico is fueled by U.S. guns and money. Killing a cartel boss won’t change that — whether Trump knows it or not.

Amid pressure from the U.S., dozens of Mexican people died in the the violence that exploded on Sunday after Mexico killed one of the most infamous drug traffickers in history.

Trump's response: “Mexico must step up their effort on Cartels and Drugs!”

theintercept.com/2026/02/23/t...

Palantir moves From Denver to Miami After mounting public pressure

They're rare, but success stories about local "site fights" changing the course of the arms industry do occur -- here's a fresh one about Palantir leaving Denver following pressure from anti-war groups, a labor union, Quakers, etc:

afsc.org/newsroom/pal...

Three Short Tales on War Kori Schake Wants You to Read Editor’s Note: This is a new occasional series brought to you by War on the Rocks. If you would like to pitch your own version, please refer to the

What does war do to the people who fight it? Three short works examine loneliness, memory, and the search for meaning.

"[Cohen] he examines six 1990s novels and two post-9/11 novels that explore the impact of the end of the Cold War [... including Tim] O'Brien's "In the Lake of the Woods" [...] Cohen emphasizes how these works reconnect the past to a present that is ironically keen on denying that connection."

Anecdotally (n of 1), Myers-Briggs does an insanely good job of separating West Point grads from learners originating from other commissioning sources. ST vs. NT. Discuss.

Comic Watch Exclusive: Mad Cave Studios Announces DOG TAGS, A Harrowing World War II Story - Comic Watch Comic Watch Exclusive: @MadCaveStudios announces DOG TAGS, a harrowing World War II story about Survival, Truth, and the Human Cost of War from @ManRuss @PJHolden #JPJordan @Bertacious10 in comic shop...

Oh, boy. Mark Russel is out of control. This looks awesome, folks. Check it out.

comic-watch.com/news/comic-w...

YouTube video by ONE Media PRESSURE Official Trailer (2026) Brendan Fraser

Brendan Fraser Eisenhower movie, Brendan Fraser Eisenhower movie, Brendan Fraser Eisenhower movie, Brendan Fraser Eisenhower movie, Brendan Fraser Eisenhower movie, Brendan Fraser Eisenhower movie, Brendan Fraser Eisenhower movie, Brendan Fraser Eisenhower movie, Brendan Fraser Eisenhower movie, Br-

Exclusive | Trump Weighs Initial Limited Strike to Force Iran Into Nuclear Deal The president was considering a range of military options but has said he still prefers diplomacy.

President Trump is weighing an initial limited military strike on Iran to force it to meet his demands for a nuclear deal, a first step that would be designed to pressure Tehran into an agreement but fall short of a full-scale attack that could inspire a major retaliation.

“WEXMAC TITUS allows ICE to treat immigration enforcement like a national security operation rather than a standard civil immigration one... This gives the agency access to a much faster contracting process with less oversight and public visibility.”

Iran-Trump live: US military ‘ready to strike within days’ US is building up its forces in the Middle East amid reports military could strike within days

War with Iran as early as this weekend, while Congress snoozes along. www.independent.co.uk/news/world/m...

New Swedish military aid package to Ukraine includes:

- Long-range drones "capable of striking Russian units and infrastructure deep inside their territory" (procurement from Ukr industry)

- Advanced short-range air defence capability

- Large procurement of ammunition, including long-range shells