Check out these photo bucket images:
IMG_7399
Image by Linn County Fair
2012 4-H/FFA Bucket Bottle Kalf Show - Photos courtesy of Todd Hunt & Dae Ann Holub
IMG_7907
Image by Linn County Fair
2012 4-H/FFA Bucket Bottle Kalf Show - Photos courtesy of Todd Hunt & Dae Ann Holub
IMG_7906
Image by Linn County Fair
2012 4-H/FFA Bucket Bottle Kalf Show - Photos courtesy of Todd Hunt & Dae Ann Holub
A few nice photo booths images I found:
Big Omaha 2011 Photo Booth
Image by Silicon Prairie News
Big Omaha 2011 Photo Booth
Image by Silicon Prairie News
Big Omaha 2011 Photo Booth
Image by Silicon Prairie News
A few nice royalty free image images I found:
Abstract Orange Texture
Image by shaire productions
By Sherrie Thai of ShaireProductions. Feel free to download and use these as a background for commercial or noncommercial projects. If you decide to use them, please let me know how it goes by sending a link or an image. Enjoy!
Frosted Glass Texture
Image by shaire productions
By Sherrie Thai of ShaireProductions. Feel free to download and use these as a background for commercial or noncommercial projects. If you decide to use them, please let me know how it goes by sending a link or an image. Enjoy!
Abstract Burgandy Brown Texture
Image by shaire productions
By Sherrie Thai of ShaireProductions. Feel free to download and use these as a background for commercial or noncommercial projects. If you decide to use them, please let me know how it goes by sending a link or an image. Enjoy!
Some cool photo websites images:
79 Dodge St. Regis
Image by DVS1mn
Minnesota State Patrol 50th Anniversary car
Website for MN State Patrol cars:
home.comcast.net/~sgtsletten/site/?/page/MSP_Cars_1981-1990/
Thousands of car pictures at the link below:
www.flickr.com/photos/greggjerdingen/collections/72157631...
Image by KesKi10
Come and check my website: photo.antoinecollet.org/ for more, or my facebook page: www.facebook.com/AntoineColletPhotography
A few nice photo creator images I found:
Makah woman weaving a basket on the beach at Neah Bay
Image by IMLS DCC
Creator: McCurdy, James G., 1872-1942
Description: Image information taken from the North Olympic Library System's Kellogg Master Index, including the following notes: Used in the book, 'Indian Days at Neah Bay.'
View source image.
More information on the commercial rights for this photo..
Part of Olympic Peninsula Community Museum
University of Washington Libraries.
Brought to you by IMLS Digital Collections and Content.
Unrestricted access; use with attribution.
Indian objects found at La Push, Clallam County, 1971
Image by IMLS DCC
Creator: Lindsley, Lawrence Denny, 1879-1974
Description: Handwritten on negative jacket: 14413, Sept. 10 to Oct. 3, 1971. Indian Curious found at La Push. Stamped on negative jacket: Olympic Peninsula Series, H.
View source image.
More information on the commercial rights for this photo..
Part of Olympic Peninsula Community Museum
University of Washington Libraries.
Brought to you by IMLS Digital Collections and Content.
Unrestricted access; use with attribution.
Sunset, La Push, September, 1969
Image by IMLS DCC
Creator: Lindsley, Lawrence Denny, 1879-1974
Description: Handwritten on negative jacket: Sept. 1969. #14233(n).Sunset from the front of church-La Push, Wash. Stamped on negative jacket: Olympic Peninsula Series, H.
View source image.
More information on the commercial rights for this photo..
Part of Olympic Peninsula Community Museum
University of Washington Libraries.
Brought to you by IMLS Digital Collections and Content.
Unrestricted access; use with attribution.
Check out these image images:
Abstract background wallpaper 18
Image by vbsouthern
This abstract image was created with G.I.M.P. (GNU Image Manipulation Program - www.gimp.org). Public domain Licensing - I, Vern B. Southern at winningwebdesigners.com, the copyright holder of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. This applies worldwide for use in the public domain free of charge as computer background wallpaper or any other use.
Abstract background wallpaper 11
Image by vbsouthern
This abstract image was created with G.I.M.P. (GNU Image Manipulation Program - www.gimp.org). Public domain Licensing - I, Vern B. Southern at winningwebdesigners.com, the copyright holder of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. This applies worldwide for use in the public domain free of charge as computer background wallpaper or any other use.
Some cool photo website images:
Laying in a field of Anemones
Image by macropoulos
Visit my website: www.macropoulos.com
Crown Anemone (Anemone coronaria)
Seeing how you liked the Anemone capture I posted on Friday, I thought I'd post some more photos from the day I layed in a field strewn with wild anemones. Hope you like this one, too :-)
Best viewed Large, On Black
Click here for more photos of the same flower species in my photostream.
Some cool photo gifts images:
A Gift of Home
Image by Tom Lin :3=
From my great friend Jume, when we were traveling in Seoul, Korea.
"Here is a gift from me to you, a token of Korea."
View On Black
A few nice photo editing online images I found:
RAW: MIlwaukee Presents Expressions 5/23/13
Image by rawartistsmedia
SET IN PROGRESS
ALL photography captured & edited by Ryan Laessig / Milwaukee Alt.
www.facebook.com/pages/Milwaukee-Alt/157022164367416
Location: The Rave / Eagles Club Basement
Please Credit If photos used online
RAW: MIlwaukee Presents Expressions 5/23/13
Image by rawartistsmedia
SET IN PROGRESS
ALL photography captured & edited by Ryan Laessig / Milwaukee Alt.
www.facebook.com/pages/Milwaukee-Alt/157022164367416
Location: The Rave / Eagles Club Basement
Please Credit If photos used online
RAW: Milwaukee Presents Expressions 5/23/13
Image by rawartistsmedia
SET IN PROGRESS
ALL photography captured & edited by Ryan Laessig / Milwaukee Alt.
www.facebook.com/pages/Milwaukee-Alt/157022164367416
Location: The Rave / Eagles Club Basement
Please Credit If photos used online
A few nice photo backgrounds images I found:
Moon - iPhone Background
Image by Patrick Hoesly
This iPhone Background (640x960 wallpaper) is released under the Creative Commons Attribution license. If you like this image, please leave a comment. Thanks!
How do I get this onto my iPhone?
There are a number of ways to do this, however I think the easiest and fastest way is to download Flickr’s free app. Within the Flickr app you surf over to my photo feed to view the images (if you make me a contact then I’ll appear in the flickr contact list). When you find one you like, just click the download button and save the image directly to your phone. Quick & Simple!
I don’t have an iPhone. Can I still use it on my phone?
As of this writing this image (960 x 640) should be large enough to be used as wallpaper with the Droid / Android, BlackBerry, Windows 7, and iPhone.
How did you make it?
This background was made using graphic design software such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Filter Forge, Genetica, Wacom, Alien Skin, Topaz Labs, as well as several other programs.
About Patrick Hoesly:
I’m a graphic illustrator, specializing in architectural illustrations and graphic design. I work with Architects, Interior Designers, and Landscape Architects, to help them visualize and sell their designs ...Or in other words... I make the fun/cool images!
Check out my Blog at ZooBoingReview.blogspot.com
Also take a look at my website at www.ZooBoing.com
Premade Background
Image by rubyblossom.
***Please, feel free to use my Textures, Backgrounds, Stock, etc., in your Artwork.
If you do use them, I would love it if you would please post your work in my group, Ruby's Treasures.
...Please DO NOT redistribute as your own...
See all my Premade Backgrounds~ Here
Check out these image stock images:
Snowfall at Wills Creek ORIGINAL
Image by javcon117
Feel free to use this image for your personal use following the Creative Commons 3.0 license. Please provide a link to your image. I'd love to see your work. Thanks!
Check out these york photo images:
012
Image by istolethetv
"air force one" flying over lower manhattan, monday april 27th, 2009. taken from 1 liberty plaza, manhattan, new york city.
gothamist.com/2009/04/27/department_of_defenses_plan_to_s...
Wall Street
Image by Gwenaël Piaser
New York
July 2012
Check out these free photo edit images:
Texture
Image by Gunnar Bangsmoen
Well, hello again! I've been really busy of late. Sorry that I haven't been able to review your work. I have partly started my holiday, but that is not the main reason why I've been away so long. My internet connection broke down, my pc got sick, my cell phone got stolen, I decided to try new editing software and I've invested some time with my family. Many reasons, and it doesn't seem like most of July will be much different :-)
Today I only have some textures for you. They are free to use and share as long as you follow the CC-license. Please also credit me if you decide to use the textures. Click on the "All Sizes" button above this image, select "Original Size" and download for use with your own images. Copy and paste this into the description with the image you use the texture on:
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FREE Textures provided by: Gunnar Bangsmoen
www.flickr.com/photos/gunnarb/
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A few nice image post images I found:
The Grand Pool
Image by Stuck in Customs
I've already posted a few photos of the fabulous Hearst Castle indoor pool. This is the one that it is nearby, just outdoors. The thing is enormous and perfect.
I wonder if it ever gets used. So sad. Maybe they put on little pool parties here and there for the elite. Or maybe rappers rent it out and bring in a bunch of rap-video-girls to gyrate around the edges. I don't know.
Read the rest of this entry, including a recap of the recent London photowalk, here at the Stuck in Customs blog.
Post Couture - Firefly
Image by Dita Actor
Alas this poor image has been severely ruined for me when BBF(?!?) came up with the observation " Looks like her farts are on fire..." nice huh
A few nice online photos images I found:
GBP140709 false breakout
Image by Tradingrichmom
GBP channel (H 1.6303, L 1.6229)
The example above shows how Rich Mom’s Forex Online Trading System protects against false channel breakouts – Rich Mom’s system did not confirm market entry at 10:45.
For trade examples go see www.flickr.com/photos/tradingrichmom/
Dagmar
Trading results that make you say W.O.W.
Follow me on twitter.com/tradingrichmom
Workshifting: Scanner, Architect
Image by citrixonline
Scanner uses the most monitors of everyone who is workshifting while he stays busy architecting software for our team.
At Citrix Online, we don't just create products that help people telecommute we use them from our home offices, cafe's, hotel rooms and even by the beach!
So in honor of Telework Week (February 14-18, 2011), our employees are sharing their workshifting photos to show all the different ways you can work remotely.
Check out these image post images:
Good luck to you.
Image by Masahiko Futami
Interesting I Google+ I Facebook Personal I My Flow
Wish you a wonderful day for you.
Image by Masahiko Futami
Interesting I Google+ I Facebook Personal I My Flow
Check out these photo lab images:
CFC in LA 44
Image by Canadian Film Centre
Nia Vardalos and Ian Gomez at a Canadian Film Centre & Variety-hosted reception for the Telefilm Canada Features Comedy Lab.
To learn more about the Canadian Film Centre, please visit: cfccreates.com
Photo by Mark Sullivan
Lab Art promo vid
Image by Birdman Photos
CFC in LA 47
Image by Canadian Film Centre
Alan Thicke, Andy Nulman, and Russell Peters at a Canadian Film Centre & Variety-hosted reception for the Telefilm Canada Features Comedy Lab.
To learn more about the Canadian Film Centre, please visit: cfccreates.com
Photo by Mark Sullivan
Some cool photo to canvas images:
Home sweet home - Barrie Ontario (2)
Image by antefixus21
Alberto de Castro painter - acrylic on canvas Snow Scene. The other 4 parts of the torn painting were framed separately.
www.flickr.com/photos/21728045@N08/6352487790/
Alberto de Castro, born, 1952, of Portuguese parents, in Huambo, Angola, spent his formative years in Spain studying painting before immigrating to Montreal, 1969. Mounting several one-man exhibitions, Alberto won the commission to paint a mural for the Portuguese Pavilion at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games. Alberto moved to Toronto in 1980, where his painting style followed the Näif school. Before he died in 1995 at the age of 42, he felt that “Canada was to him what Tahiti was to Gauguin.” Examples of his work can be found throughout Europe, in the Ontario Provincial Legislature, in Toronto’s Our Lady of Lourdes Church, at the Portuguese Consulate, Toronto, and in the corporate offices of Shell, IBM, Imperial Oil, and Sanyo. In 1985, his paintings were used on UNICEF Christmas cards and, in 1986, he exhibited at the third annual Salon international d’art näif in Paris. Many of his works today are kept at the Casa do Alentejo, Toronto’s Portuguese Community Centre.
Check out these photo studio images:
Daily Disney - Ding Dong...
Image by Express Monorail
Quick EXIF:
Exposure: 1/60
Aperture: f/1.4
Focal Length: 50mm
ISO: 1000
Pictured:
The Great Movie Ride
Hollywood Boulevard
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Walt Disney World Resort
Bay Lake, Florida
June, 2009
Thanks for stopping by!
View On Black
See where this picture was taken. [?]
Disney Photo Challenge winner in "Originals" - thanks for your votes!
The Winner in 7th Arabian - European photofestival 2010
Image by SanforaQ8
**This Photo is a winner of Bronze middle in the 7.th Festival AUOP EU 2010.
Location : Sheikh Zayed Mosque , UAE
Camera : FujiFlim FenPix S5 Pro
Lens : Sigma 10-20mm
N-Studio Official website
YouTube Channel
FaceBook
Mobile: +965 66 383 666
E-Mail: N_Studio@Live.Com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
© All rights reserved to sanfora
Check out these digital photos images:
Pink
Image by fs999
Pentax K-5 • 200 ISO • Pentax DA* 50-135mm f:2.8 SDM
Hoya Pro1 Digital Filter Close-Up N°3
White Flames
Image by fs999
Pentax K-5 • 80 ISO • Pentax DA* 50-135mm f:2.8 SDM
Hoya Pro1 Digital Filter Close-Up N°3
Some cool free photo software images:
IMG_0061_20121013 "Just Do It!"
Image by Kesara Rathnayake (kesara.lk)
kesara.lk
This photograph was taken in Galle Fort, Sri Lanka on Scott Kelby's World Wide Photo Walk 2012.
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This image was created with free open source software Raw Therapee. This image is available under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.
A few nice image upload images I found:
Chase Alias' :)(: Potentiality of Objects
Image by Chase Alias :)(:
The practice of photography is no longer a means of recording reality, it has become reality itself. Photography as a mediums also endowed with all the fundamental implications of a material object, such as scale, density and focal points. It also acts as a gauge for all potential realities, having evolved into a marvelous relationship between our understanding of material Images and photography as a material object itself. Images become an important reference point for distinguishing between the authenticity and potentiality of objects, and within this distinction they once again become truth itself.
-Ai WeiWei
This work of Immersion art is performed by Chase Alias and photographed by David Pollack. Immersion Artistist David Pollack spends years developing his characters. The development of these two characters happened over a period of 7 years. Cubby's Basehouse and then Chase Alias' Craigslist are David's newest series of works.
NOISE
Image by Jon Betts
NOISE project source photographs. Only the above, unaltered* photographs were used to create the images of the NOISE project. Two images are not included as they were presented as taken.*
Note: The comments below are formatted for mobile. Flickr Mobile does not understand the concpet of a paragraph. Sorry for the multiple comments.
“The problem of the artist is to defamiliarize the ordinary” --Paul Rand
Check out these photo effects images:
Mark's Photos Of Rome May 2010 Tiltshift
Image by A.Currell
Yellow brick road
Image by c@rljones
(Harris Shutter Effect) Boogie Boarding I
Image by Thiophene_Guy
Boogie boarding at the beach. View On Black
The Harris shutter effect combines different color layers from three successive shots to give colored ghosts to moving elements. This series of frames was taken hand-held and required alignment correction (I used Picturewindow pro). Artifacts from the blue layer, though present, are difficult to see except in large size. Alternatively, look here to isolate the Harris shutter effect, removing the beach and sky.
Peruse the Rehoboth Beach Harris shutter effect project.
Some cool online photo editor images:
How to Use Flickr, The Digital Photography Revolution
Image by Thomas Hawk
Posted this at my blog today:
"Well if you read this blog regularly then you know I love Flickr (almost certainly the best online photo management and sharing application in the world). But while frequent Flickr users may love the capabilities of the site, it can still be a formidable thing to navigate for the more casual photographer or beginner new to the whole online photo sharing thing.
It’s great then to see Richard Giles out with his fine new book, How to Use Flickr, The Digital Photography Revolution. I would heartily recommend this 276 page primer for anyone who is interested in learning the ropes of how Flickr works a bit more. The book also would also make a great gift for a friend of family member if you are already a Flickr old hand but would like to help someone new get into the service. At a little over for the book from Amazon it’s a bargain.
Even though the book is a great book for Flickr newcomers, I also still found myself, even as a more advanced Flickr user, learning quite a bit (especially about the history of Flickr and the staff).
The book is organized and laid out nicely and is structured in an easy way to figure Flickr out on a step by step basis. It starts out with basic chapters about things like “Introducing Flickr” and “Getting Started” and progresses through all of the various aspects of the service ending with more advance uses and the last chapter, “Third-Party Flickr Tools.”
Throughout the book there are great little anecdote sections that bring up all kinds of interesting Flickr trivia and information. Things like Flickr Coincidences, how the “May Offend” button works, special html tags for posting to Flickr or blogs, etc. Hey, even Thomas Hawk gets a mention in one, but I won't say where. There are also many interviews with tech heavyweights about Flickr like Boing Boing’s Cory Doctorow, CNET’s Esther Dyson (an early investor), and various high profile Flickr members themselves.
Included in the book also are great rundowns on some of the more popular groups and Flickr forums, a pretty handy writeup on how the various licensing for your photos work on Flickr (creative commons and all it’s variations vs. all rights reserved, etc.), uploading via email or with your mobile phone, etc.
Overall I was impressed with the completeness of the book while at the same time I was impressed with how easy it was to read and follow. Author Richard Giles, who also produces The Gadget Show podcast, did a thorough job, and as Technical Editor Flickr member Striatic keeps lots of the more advanced Flickr info in line. It’s great to see a book like this out there and I wish them lots of success!
I’ve written a couple of other posts on Flickr basics myself including “Top 10 Tips for Getting Attention on Flickr” and “Top 10 Ways to Find Great Photos on Flickr.”
Once upon a midnight dreary
Image by elycefeliz
27/100 Possibilities~ 100 Possibilities Project set
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Allan_Poe
Edgar Allan Poe (January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American poet, short-story writer, editor and literary critic. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective-fiction genre. He is further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction. He was the first well-known American writer to try to earn a living through writing alone, resulting in a financially difficult life and career.
He was born Edgar Poe in Boston, Massachusetts, on January 19, 1809, the second child of actress Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins Poe and actor David Poe, Jr. He had an elder brother, William Henry Leonard Poe, and a younger sister, Rosalie Poe. His father abandoned their family in 1810, and his mother died a year later from consumption. Poe was then taken into the home of John Allan, a successful Scottish merchant in Richmond, Virginia, who dealt in a variety of goods including tobacco, cloth, wheat, tombstones, and slaves. The Allans served as a foster family but never formally adopted Poe, though they gave him the name "Edgar Allan Poe".
online.wsj.com/article/SB123197476396583373.html
www.poemuseum.org/
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annabel_Lee
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
`'Tis some visitor,' I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.'
Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow; - vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow - sorrow for the lost Lenore -
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels named Lenore -
Nameless here for evermore.
And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me - filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
`'Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door -
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door; -
This it is, and nothing more,'
Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
`Sir,' said I, `or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you' - here I opened wide the door; -
Darkness there, and nothing more.
www.heise.de/ix/raven/Literature/Lore/TheRaven.html
Dreams
Some cool share photos images:
NASAstorm
Image by Stuck in Customs
I wanted to share this photo I just took of a massive storm sweeping over the complex on the evening before the launch. I was supposed to be going over to the actual launch pad as night was falling to get a shot, but this storm started to roll in, upsetting those plans. The big structure you see on the other side of the flag is the Vehicle Assembly Building, and that blue structure you see to the left is the famous countdown-clock you always see in front of the press area before the launch. Right as I was taking this, an official lady from NASA ran into the field warning me that this was now a "Level 2 lightning alert!" I happen to be standing by another NASA Tweetup invitee, Lavar Burton. He asked, "Is that like a Level 3 diagnostic?" Greatness. He was a really cool guy, btw... I put up a photo of us together over on my Facebook Page.
Read more, including information on the free version of the 100 Cameras in 1 iPad app, here at stuckincustoms.com.
Colmore "Fairy Specimen" Print
Image by crowolf
I have not shared any of the Neville Colmore fatagravures in awhile. The project continues and this little curiosity is easy enough to present. It is a photo of a museum display. If it is the specimen I believe it to be, it was reported lost in the fire. This photo may have been taken when it was on loan to a private, local Scottish natural history museum. More of a wealthy man's wunderkamern than a museum really. The official story was that it was a bog mummy similar to the one posted previously but the high degree of preservation and the lack of discoloration and dessication argue otherwise. Since that earlier posting I have found certain fragmentary passages from the journals and some unpublished contemporary references that lead me to believe that it might have been collected and preserved by Colmore himself using formalin and paraffin preservation techniques. The degree of preservation also raised the possibilty that it was a hoax. If so, it was reportedly no mere carnival gaff but an exquisite work of art. Otherwise, it raises further questions about possible rifts or tears in the veil of faery.
Arlington National Cemetery (June 2011) ...item 1.. Afghan war's deadly toll on US forces hasn't eased (July 02, 2011 ) ...item 2.. Utah News-The Salt Lake Tribune (July 13, 2011) ...
Image by marsmet521
FILE - In this June 15, 2011 file photo, Amy Balduf, of Richmond, Tenn., is comforted by a Marine at the graveside of her husband, U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Kevin Balduf, who was killed serving in Afghanistan, at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va.
Despite U.S. claims of success on the battlefield, American troops have been dying in the first half of this year at the same pace as in 2010, according to a tally by The Associated Press. The numbers indicate the war's deadly toll on American forces has not eased as the Obama administration moves to shift the burden onto its Afghan allies.
(AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File) less
Associated Press.......5 hrs ago
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........*****All images are copyrighted by their respective authors ........
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KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Despite U.S. reports of progress on the battlefield, American troops were killed in the first half of this year at the same pace as in 2010 — an indication that the war's toll on U.S. forces has not eased as the Obama administration moves to shift the burden to the Afghans.
While the overall international death toll dropped by 14 percent in the first half of the year, the number of Americans who died remained virtually unchanged, 197 this year compared with 195 in the first six months of last year, according to a tally by The Associated Press.
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.....item 1).... Yahoo! News ... World ... Afghan war's deadly toll on US forces hasn't eased
By DEB RIECHMANN - Associated Press | AP – Sat, Jul 2, 2011
news.yahoo.com/afghan-wars-deadly-toll-us-forces-hasnt-ea...
Americans have been involved in some of the fiercest fighting as the U.S. administration sent more than 30,000 extra troops in a bid to pacify areas in the Taliban's southern heartland and other dangerous areas. U.S. military officials have predicted more tough fighting through the summer as the Taliban try to regain territory they have lost.
President Barack Obama has begun to reverse the surge of American forces, ordering a reduction of 10,000 by the end of the year and another 23,000 by September 2012. But the U.S. military has not announced which troops are being sent home, or whether they will be withdrawn from any of the most violent areas in the south and east.
Rear Adm. Vic Beck, a spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition in Kabul, said he couldn't comment specifically on the U.S. death count, but noted that the casualties were unchanged despite the surge in forces. He attributed the overall decline in the international toll to coalition progress on the battlefield, including the discovery of a rising number of militant weapons caches. He also said Afghan security forces are increasingly taking the lead, although recent violence has raised concerns about their readiness to secure their own country.
Beck said insurgents were shifting their focus to attacking civilians, pointing to last week's attack against the Inter-Continental, a luxury hotel in Kabul, that left 20 people dead, including the nine assailants.
"The enemy is taking the fight more to innocent Afghan civilians because we're taking it to them pretty hard on the battlefield," he said.
According to the AP tally, 271 international troops, including the Americans, were killed in the first half of the year — down 14 percent from the 316 killed in the first six months of last year.
With the American deaths virtually unchanged, the decline reflects a drop off in deaths of troops from other contributing nations. In the first half of the year, 74 of these troops — from countries like Britain, France and Australia — died compared with 121 in the first six months of last year.
In the most recent deaths, NATO said two coalition service members were killed in roadside bombings — one Saturday in the west who was identified as an Italian, and another Friday in the south whose nationality was not available.
By contrast, a recent U.N. report found that May was the deadliest month for civilians since it began keeping track in 2007, and it said insurgents were to blame for 82 percent of the 368 deaths recorded.
The U.N. does not usually release monthly civilian casualty figures but said it was compelled to do so in May because of the high number.
The Taliban have denied targeting civilians and insist coalition claims that insurgents have suffered heavy losses at the hands of foreign troops are false.
Monthly death tolls of foreign forces have varied so far this year, but they fell dramatically in June.
Overall, 65 international troops, including Americans, died last month. That's down 37 percent from the 103 who died in June 2010 — the deadliest month on record for foreign forces. More than 25 died last month in Helmand province in the south where fierce fighting continues in some hot spots, the AP tally showed.
"In the areas that we believe were pretty secure, there has been very little violence," U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. John Toolan Jr., the commander in Helmand province, said at a recent Pentagon briefing. He said he's still concerned about northern districts like Gereshk and Sangin.
He said his forces are working with their Afghan partners to try to keep hold of security gains made in recent months.
"I'm pretty sure, pretty confident we'll be able to do that, but it won't be without a fight," Toolan said. "But it will not be as big a fight, in my estimation, as it has been in the past."
Underscoring the dangers, a roadside bomb ripped through a van carrying a family Saturday in southern Afghanistan, killing all 13 on board — the deadliest incident in a string of attacks since Friday that killed 18 civilians, according to Afghan officials.
President Hamid Karzai condemned the attacks, saying in a statement that "bombings that kill innocent civilians are the work of people who don't want the nation to have a life without sadness."
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.....item 2).... Utah NEWS ... TheSalt Lake Tribune ... Parents of fallen Logan Marine were torn by his choice to enlist
BY KRISTEN MOULTON
The Salt Lake Tribune
First published Jul 13 2011 05:14PM
Updated Jul 14, 2011 10:32AM
www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52184950-78/marine-son-mendez-...
Logan • The father of the 22-year-old Logan Marine killed in Afghanistan on Sunday has just one question during these dark days.
"How many soldiers have to be shot in the back before they stop the war?" asked a somber Norberto Mendez on Wednesday as he and his wife, Maria Mendez Hernandez, tried to come to grips with their eldest son’s death. They spoke through an interpreter.
"I don’t want any other mother to suffer," said the Marine’s mom.
Lance Cpl. Norberto Mendez Hernandez, an infantryman in a battalion fighting to keep the Taliban out of the Sangin region of Helmand province, was shot in the back of his head while on foot patrol, the Department of Defense told the family.
He leaves behind his wife, Lorena, 2-year-old son Anthony and 8-month-old daughter Audrey at Camp Pendleton, Calif., as well as his parents and four younger siblings, Thomas, Itzel, Abraham and Aileen, in Logan.
The 2007 graduate of Logan High School and former production worker at Gossner Foods fulfilled a lifelong dream when he enlisted in the Marines in April 2010. He was a member of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division based at Camp Pendleton.
His parents, both immigrants from Mexico, are now wondering what more they could have done to discourage their son from joining the military — from going to war.
"Every since he was a little boy, this is what he wanted," his mother said Wednesday as she reminisced, frequently breaking into sobs.
She told her son the uniform and Marine gear would weigh him down, make him shorter.
"I would tell him there are other ways to help your country," his mother said through the interpreter, her son’s friend, Carlos Rosales.
At one point, his father even threatened to join the military if his son did. So Mendez Hernandez put his dad in a headlock to prove he wasn’t fit enough.
In the end, the younger man prevailed by insisting he felt called to action by God and the Bible. He shared his favorite passages with his family, those with messages about bravery, justice and trust in God.
"He would say, ‘I’m not happy with just my family being happy. There are kids suffering in other countries, and I want to help,’ "his mother said. "He had a lot of faith in God."
He didn’t believe he would die, although they had discussed that possibility, she said.
And while they disagreed with his choice, his parents were proud.
His father said he awoke Sunday from a dream that his son had died. The family learned the news later that day while celebrating Thomas’ 17th birthday at Lagoon. Marines were waiting for them back home in Logan.
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On Wednesday, Thomas was thinking about lessons his big brother taught him: about government and the military and its role; about how to never abuse the self-defense maneuvers the older brother taught him on the living-room floor.
"He used to take me out to run with him because he said I was lazy," Thomas said.
His mother remembered some of her eldest son’s tricks, such as the time he translated for his third-grade teacher, who came to their home to say he wasn’t doing his homework.
"He told me, ‘Hey, I’m doing great in school.’ "
His mother could read the teacher’s expression, however, and got a new translator.
When they visited Mexico, he would go to the grocery store for laundry soap and return with chocolate.
As a teenager, he put so many holes in his bedroom walls while wrestling with friends that his mother threw up her hands.
The Marine’s funeral will be held in California, where his wife and children now live and where there is extended family. No date had been set for the funeral as of Wednesday.
Before he died, his Logan family intended to move to Arizona or California to be closer to him.
"For sure they’re moving now," Rosales said.
They want to be close to his grave — and the young family he left behind.
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