Marine Corps Times

A Black Hawk crew chief assigned to the 3rd Assault Helicopter Battalion, 1st Aviation Regiment, 1st Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, looks out over the flight line during a hot refueling in Topeka, Kansas, March 7, 2023. (Spc. Charles Leitner/Army)

The world’s attention is fixed on the Strait of Hormuz now that the U.S. Navy is blockading the crucial shipping channel at President Donald Trump’s behest. But some foreign policy experts warn that the strait is not the only potential choke point that Iran and its proxies could leverage.

A TAPS peer mentor provides comfort to a grieving military family member at Arlington National Cemetery. (Courtesy of TAPS)

The flu vaccine has been required annually for U.S. military personnel since the 1950s. (Senior Airman Andrew Garavito/U.S. Air Force)

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An F-35B Lighting II prepares to take off from the flight deck of America-class amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli in April 2026. (U.S. Navy)

A U.S. Marine Corps combat engineer fires an M3E1 multipurpose anti-armor anti-personnel weapon system at Camp Lejeune, N.C., in 2021. (Lance Cpl. Brian Bolin Jr./Marine Corps)

A U.S. Marine explores how artificial intelligence (AI) can help with resume writing. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Anthony C. Ramsey Jr.)

An amphibious combat vehicle attached to the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit splashes off the amphibious dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry during an exercise at Naval Detachment Oyster Bay, Philippines, on May 4, 2024. (Lance Cpl. Peyton Kahle/Marine Corps)

Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book "A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families." She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.