Daily Dispatch News

SILVERDALE, Wash. — This is one 21st birthday to forget. A 21-year-old man stationed at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor has been arrested after getting into multiple altercations on what one of his friends told law enforcement was the man's 21st birthday. The man was kicked out of the Old Town Bistro early Saturday morning, the first in a series of events. The Kitsap Sun reports about 12:15 a.m. a witness said the man approached him and started a conversation. The man said he was in the Marines, while the witness replied he was in the Navy. The suspect shook his hand then punched him in the face saying, "I ... hate the Navy." Two security guards tried to subdue the suspect, but one was kicked in the groin. A Washington State Patrol trooper and Kitsap County Sheriff's deputy eventually got the man under control and transported him to U.S. Naval Base Police at Bangor.

Call it a year of renewed focus. The Marine Corps’ primary combat mission and deployments in 2010 all appear to be clear. A surge of 30,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan, including 8,500 Marines, is underway, and the Corps expects to stand up an expanded command structure led by a two-star general based in Helmand province in the spring. Nearly 20,000 Marines will be deployed to Afghanistan by May, but that still leaves more than 180,000 to conduct other business for the service, including training, the testing and acquisition of new gear and planning for the future. A look at what’s ahead in 2010: 1. A new commandant By the time Marines gather to celebrate the Corps’ 235th birthday in 2010, they will see a new senior officer take the helm as commandant. Gen. James Conway, who has served as the service chief since Nov. 13, 2006, will reach the end of his four-year term Nov. 13, 2010. It’s too early for the names of possible replacements to be submitted to the Navy secretary, the first ste...