Best Defense

Thomas E. Ricks' daily take on national security.

Cracks and fissures: gang activity inside the military

The Air Force is court-martialing one of its staff sergeants for the beating death of an Army soldier during an initiation into the Gangster Disciples gang at a U.S. base in Germany in July 2005. Gang activity inside the military is one of the warning signs of deteriorating discipline. Meanwhile, the Marine Corps is ordering ...

The Air Force is court-martialing one of its staff sergeants for the beating death of an Army soldier during an initiation into the Gangster Disciples gang at a U.S. base in Germany in July 2005. Gang activity inside the military is one of the warning signs of deteriorating discipline.

The Air Force is court-martialing one of its staff sergeants for the beating death of an Army soldier during an initiation into the Gangster Disciples gang at a U.S. base in Germany in July 2005. Gang activity inside the military is one of the warning signs of deteriorating discipline.

Meanwhile, the Marine Corps is ordering its Camp Pendleton Marines not to party in Tijuana. This resonates with me — my son recently moved out of Mexico because of the violence in its capital, which included being robbed at gunpoint on the street.

Thomas E. Ricks covered the U.S. military from 1991 to 2008 for the Wall Street Journal and then the Washington Post. He can be reached at ricksblogcomment@gmail.com. Twitter: @tomricks1

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