House Passes Fallen Heroes Act: The House has passed the Respect for America’s Fallen Heroes Act, which would prohibit demonstrations at national cemeteries and restricts any demonstration within 500 feet during a military funeral or service 60 minutes before and after the event. There has been considerable disruption of several military funerals by a Kansas church group that is not protesting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan but the fact that DOD does not prohibit military service by homosexuals. (Read one account here.) “This legislation is a clear sign that there is no tolerance for those who choose to disrupt the sacred and sacrosanct burial of a loved one,” said Rep. Steve Buyer (R-Ind.), Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. Buyer is urging the Senate to act on the bill, which passed with broad bipartisan support, so the President could sign it into law prior to Memorial Day.
An Air Force F-16 pilot designed a collapsible ladder that weighs just six pounds and folds into the unused cockpit map case.