January 9, 2010: Little things mean a lot. The U.S. Air Force recently made a minor change in its regulations to allow personnel being transferred (often for only a few months) from bases in the Pacific, to Iraq or Afghanistan, to take a few days leave when they pass through the United States. The air force has long routed transferred personnel going from the Pacific to the Middle East, through the United States. But it has never allowed them to interrupt that trip to take a few days off to see family and friends, before they move on. These days, the movement ends in a war zone, and the troops were not happy with the inability to see the family one more time before that. The new rule allows airmen to take up to 14 days leave while being flown to Iraq or Afghanistan. This was a very popular change.