Readers; Tomorrow is tax day. Along with the annual ritual of sending in your forms we explore the annual ritual of criminals who attempt to separate us from our hard earned money by running tax scams. Good article below on an example of a scam.

In this week's BTW is a quote from our second President, John Adams. If you get a chance, watch the recent HBO series. Well done and historically accurate.

Also we give you some good news from around the world on the global war on terror. Somali pirates took a French yacht hostage, but now it looks like the French are fighting mad. Pakistan's new prime minister takes a get tough policy with terrorists and an international arms dealer is off the market.

Unfortunately, the Iraqi government was unable to quell the uprising by Shia militia in South-Western Iraq, without U.S. and British assistance, and when it had an opportunity to finish off the problem, stopped short. This does not bode well for a near-time ending to the war.

Lastly, some breaking news on gangs and our neighbors to the South.

Hope you enjoy this week's BTW.

John Wrenn
Managing Editor, Blackwater Tactical Weekly
Director, Corporate Communications

John Adams

Help may be on the way for a French yacht seized last week by Somali pirates.

PARIS: Elite French troops have been dispatched to East Africa to bolster an effort to free the crew of a yacht that was seized by pirates off Somalia, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said Monday.

Interesting analysis of the Iraqi government's response to the recent uprising by the Mahdi Army.

Even as General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker made their case on Capitol Hill for maintaining U.S. troop levels in Iraq, a key Iraqi advocate of sending them home was making a power play. Tensions had been high in Baghdad Tuesday morning, in anticipation of a million-strong march against the U.S. occupation called by Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr...

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The Backup Training Corporation has introduced a free new Law Enforcement Newsletter. Delivered in electronic format, the newsletter contains a variety of brief training articles in each issue. These articles have been based on portions of the company's extensive library of law enforcement courses and provide practical tips that you can use in your everyday police work. Read these articles and you will want to see the full courses. The Backup is the premier digital training provider for law enforcement.- Click here to subscribe or learn more!

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Here is an overview of upcoming tactical vehicles.

The new family of vehicles includes the mounted combat vehicle (carrying a 120mm cannon), a command and control vehicle, reconnaissance and surveillance vehicle, an infantry carrier vehicle...

Covington, TN - After four years of extensive research and development, Hydratrek, LLC is unveiling its industrial duty emergency response vehicle, the Hydratrek, to the mass market. Able to maneuver into areas that have rarely before been accessible by land, Hydratrek's amphibious vehicle can effortlessly trek up and down steep inclines, through heavy sticky mud, swamps, woodlands, earthquake zones and flood waters.

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New enhanced performance for bio-aerosol detectors.

Commercially available, fast-response bio-aerosol detectors that can help guard against bioterrorist strikes in large public spaces face a significant hurdle: false alarms.

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Critical updates available to popular programs to avoid hacker exploitation.

Fixes for both products emerged to counter threats against vulnerabilities in these popular multimedia applications.

Popular multimedia applications needed attention from engineers to correct flaws that could have led to exploitation.

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The military is paying the same high price for fuel that we are. There is also the risk to fuel truck convoys. To mitigate the costs and risks, the Army is looking for alternate power and fuel sources.

As roadside attacks on fuel convoys continue to plague the U.S. military, the Army is pursuing a new "intelligent" power program that could cut petroleum use in half at bases in Iraq, Army officials say.

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Tactical Equipment Evaluation

Way back in the day... I remember putting on a flack jacket and then a load bearing harness (LBE) to carry my six M16 magazines, field dressing, four grenades (that I never got), two canteens and my poncho. Getting it all on and off was a pain but it was better than not having it if I needed it. Today things are a bit different: armor-integrated carriers are the norm and MOLLE attachment makes customizing each vest fairly easy. Something we also learned was that sometimes it's good to be able to ditch the vest in a hurry (falling in water is one of those times). "Cutaway" vests were born. As an upgrade to the standard MOLLE system, BlackHawk created the S.T.R.I.K.E. system and they've combined that with a cutaway design that makes for high levels of versatility. Let's take a look...

Full Story Can Be Viewed At:

Recreational Equipment Review

Those of you who have read my book reviews before know that I'm a fan of Robert B. Parker. Still, he's written a few books that I checked out and wasn't enthused with. As an example, I'm not a fan of his Sunny Randall novels, but I love his Spenser and Jesse Stone books. Having been a long time Spenser fan I didn't really think I'd like the newer characters he came up with. I mean... it took the next generation of Star Trek five years to grow on me before I could even sit through a full episode. Needless to say, I don't do change very well. That said, his Jesse Stone books proved enjoyable and "Stranger In Paradise" is the latest in that series.

couroage [kur-ij]

Full Story Can Be Viewed At:

http://www.blackwaterusa.com/btw2008/article/041408chaplain.htm

Here is some great advice on how to wedge even a little fitness into your day.

Do you know about the benefits of exercise and the risks of inactivity, yet still find it difficult to incorporate physical activity into your lifestyle? If so, you are not alone. Most people have good intentions, but don't seem to find the time, or inclination to exercise. This article is written for you. When you are finished reading it, I hope that you will have found a few tips that you can use, and a way to help you to actually do them.

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You may not like broccoli, but leafy green vegetables are a healthy alternative and widely available.

Leaf vegetables, also called potherbs, greens, or leafy greens, are plant leaves eaten as a vegetable, sometimes accompanied by tender petioles and shoots.

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Black Five (http://www.blackfive.net/)
Blackwater Facts (http://www.blackwaterfacts.com/
Blogs of War (http://www.blogsofwar.com/)
Fifteen Months (http://www.fifteenmonths.blogspot.com/)
Iraq Slogger (http://www.iraqslogger.com/)
The Long War Journal (http://www.longwarjournal.org/)
Small Wars Journal (http://www.smallwarsjournal.com/)
The Spy Who Billed Me (http://www.thespywhobilledme.com/)

Don't believe everything you think...