He told me that one time, on a bombing mission, a gun blister failed. One guy was blown out, an instant fog filled the cabin and all manor of debris pelted everyone else. At other times, he had to man machine guns for the dead or wounded. He wasn’t sure if he ever shot down any MIGs, but he knew that he hit some of them.

He lined his work station with “bullet-proof” vests. There was one guy making head on passes at them. My dad said that he saw tracer rounds going into his instrument panel from overhead… terrifying.

There were other missions in which he flew in B-26’s. He told me that there were times when they weaved between the enemey AAA tracers, just like in the movie “The Bridges at Toko-Ri”.

It really is a miracle that I am here. All of this occurred years before I was born. I am so thankful to be alive, and that my three sons were born (in Plano, Texas).

I hope to have half as much of a legacy as my brave father had in the defense of our Country. I feel that that there is no way I could come close to what he did. He was an extremely brave and courageous man.

God Bless him and all the others who sacrificed themselves and rose above their fears to do for our Nation and way of life that no one else could do.

God save us, preserve us, and may His face shine upon us…

You honor them by being the best American that you can be, being the best parent, friend or spouse, being the best supporter of the “the soldier’s and sailor’s widow and orphan.” We must never forget their families.

God bless you all.

Hero is an understatement for the brave Women and Men keeping all Americans and other Countries safe.

I stare out into the darkness from my post, and I watch the city burn to the ground. I smell the familiar smells, I walk through the familiar rubble, and I look at the frightened faces that watch me pass down the streets of their neighborhoods. My nerves hardly rest; my hands are steady on a device that has been given to me from my government for the purpose of taking the lives of others.
I sweat, and I am tired. My back aches from the loads I carry. Young American boys look to me to direct them in a manner that will someday allow them to see their families again…and yet, I too, am just a boy….my age not but a few years more than that of the ones I lead. I am stressed, I am scared, and I am paranoid…because death is everywhere. It waits for me, it calls to me from around street corners and windows, and it is always there.
There are the demons that follow me, and tempt me into thoughts and actions that are not my own…but that are necessary for survival. I’ve made compromises with my humanity. And I am not alone in this. Miles from me are my brethren in this world, who walk in the same streets…who feel the same things, whether they admit to it or not.
And to think, I volunteered for this…
And I am ignorant to the rest of the world…or so I thought.
But even thousands of miles away, in Ramadi, Iraq, the cries and screams and complaints of the ungrateful reach me. In a year, I will be thrust back into society from a life and mentality that doesn’t fit your average man. And then, I will be alone. And then, I will walk down the streets of America, and see the yellow ribbon stickers on the cars of the same people who compare our President to Hitler.
I will watch the television and watch the Cindy Sheehans, and the Al Frankens, and the rest of the ignorant sheep of America spout off their mouths about a subject they know nothing about. It is their right, however, and it is a right that is defended by hundreds of thousands of boys and girls scattered across the world, far from home. I use the word boys and girls, because that’s what they are. In the Army, the average age of the infantryman is nineteen years old. The average rank of soldiers killed in action is Private First Class.
People like Cindy Sheehan are ignorant. Not just to this war, but to the results of their idiotic ramblings, or at least I hope they are. They don’t realize its effects on this war. In this war, there are no Geneva Conventions, no cease fires. Medics and Chaplains are not spared from the enemy’s brutality because it’s against the rules. I can only imagine the horrors a military Chaplain would experience at the hands of the enemy. The enemy slinks in the shadows and fights a coward’s war against us. It is effective though, as many men and women have died since the start of this war. And the memory of their service to America is tainted by the inconsiderate remarks on our nation’s news outlets. And every day, the enemy changes…only now, the enemy is becoming something new. The enemy is transitioning from the Muslim extremists to Americans. The enemy is becoming the very people whom we defend with our lives. And they do not realize it. But in denouncing our actions, denouncing our leaders, denouncing the war we live and fight, they are isolating the military from society…and they are becoming our enemy.
Democrats and peace activists like to toss the word “quagmire” around and compare this war to Vietnam. In a way they are right, this war is becoming like Vietnam. Not the actual war, but in the isolation of country and military. America is not a nation at war; they are a nation with its military at war. Like it or not, we are here, some of us for our second, or third times; some even for their fourth and so on. Americans are so concerned now with politics, that it is interfering with our war.
Terrorists cut the heads off of American citizens on the internet…and there is no outrage, but an American soldier kills an Iraqi in the midst of battle, and there are investigations, and sometimes soldiers are even jailed…for doing their job.
It is absolutely sickening to me to think our country has come to this. Why are we so obsessed with the bad news? Why will people stop at nothing to be against this war, no matter how much evidence of the good we’ve done is thrown in their face? When is the last time CNN or MSNBC or CBS reported the opening of schools and hospitals in Iraq? Or the leaders of terror cells being detained or killed? It’s all happening, but people will not let up their hatred of President Bush. They will ignore the good news, because it just might show people that Bush was right.
America has lost its will to fight. It has lost its will to defend what is right and just in the world. The crazy thing of it all is that the American people have not even been asked to sacrifice a single thing. It’s not like World War II, where people rationed food and turned in cars to be made into metal for tanks. The American people have not been asked to sacrifice anything. Unless you are in the military or the family member of a service member, its life as usual…the war doesn’t affect you.
But it affects us. And when it is over and the troops come home and they try to piece together what’s left of them after their service…where will the detractors be then? Where will the Cindy Sheehans be to comfort and talk to soldiers and help them sort out the last couple years of their lives, most of which have been spent dodging death and wading through the deaths of their friends? They will be where they always are, somewhere far away, where the horrors of the world can’t touch them. Somewhere where they can complain about things they will never experience in their lifetime; things that the young men and women of America have willingly taken upon their shoulders.
We are the hope of the Iraqi people. They want what everyone else wants in life: safety, security, somewhere to call home. They want a country that is safe to raise their children in. Not a place where their children will be abducted, raped and murdered if they do not comply with the terrorists demands. They want to live on, rebuild and prosper. And America has given them the opportunity, but only if we stay true to the cause and see it to its end. But the country must unite in this endeavor…we cannot place the burden on our military alone. We must all stand up and fight, whether in uniform or not. And supporting us is more than sticking yellow ribbon stickers on your cars. It’s supporting our President, our troops and our cause.
Right now, the burden is all on the American soldiers. Right now, hope rides alone. But it can change, it must change. Because there is only failure and darkness ahead for us as a country, as a people, if it doesn’t.
Let’s stop all the political nonsense, let’s stop all the bickering, let’s stop all the bad news and let’s stand and fight!
Isn’t that what America is about anyway?
Sergeant Eddie Jeffers is a US Army Infantryman serving in Ramadi, Iraq.
by Sgt Tim @ 12:00 pm.
Filed under John in Dublin, Tim Sumner, Mark Levin Audio   [link]

Villains are willing to sacrifice others for themselves.
Heroes are willing to sacrifice themselves for others.

To all those Heroes who:
Fight to Defend us,
Protect and Serve us,
Rush into danger to Rescue us,

Thank you, all Brave and Noble Heroes!

Thank You for our Lives!
Thank You for our Liberty!
Thank You for our Freedom!
Thank You for Everything we have!

We will NEVER forget you!

I have formed the following belief:

With our ever-expanding population, it is inevitable that Heaven would run out of Guardian Angels.
Therefore, those Heroes who serve with Honor are offered a promotion when their time here is done.

Rank is assigned not according to rank achieved in life,
but according to the level of sacrifice given (life, limb, etc.)

When I am blessed enough to have children (hopefully), and they tell me how worried they are about the monster under the bed or hiding in the closet, I will tell them this belief. I will explain to them the difference between Hero and Villain and how the forces of evil get the worst and most cowardly while the forces of good get the best and bravest.

I will explain all this so that my children will know the caliber of the Guardian Angels standing watch over them.

Then I will tell them, “That’s why the monsters are hiding.”

Fly the flag this weekend …

On Monday, fly it properly. At half-staff until noon, then raised to the top until the end of the day.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389×5702810

On May 22nd, 2009 at 12:13 pm, cpodug said:

Damn, Michelle – I already had a problem with my monitor fogging up earlier this morning – now it’s gone all blurry on me again!

Let your monitor fog up one more time.
Warriors in their own words.

Semper Fi

“…And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm Reliance on the Protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.”

They put the words to paper for all to see, and signed it. Willing to give their lives, their fortunes and even their HONOR – something which is seemingly meaningless in this day and age.

Many did lose it all. But they left a legacy for those of us who understand; for those of us who have seen freedoms lost and stolen; for those of us who stand in the breech, who stand at the line in the sand or ride the ship at sea and say “We are Americans and we are FREE.” We cannot forget the past, lest we repeat it. We must stand united against the tyranny and the tyrant, in whatever guise he or she appears, and take them out of the picture.

I stand at rigid attention and offer a salute to those who left this great thing – freedom – for me to defend, with a promise that I will do my best until my last breath to protect what you have given.

I am neither a Marine or Coast Guard person, but their mottoes: “Semper Fidelis” and “Semper Paratus” should be our watch words.

Honor those who give their all for you. I know I will – for the friends who are no longer here to raise a toast to the ones who departed before us and before their time.

Thanks for your support from this old Warrant Officer.

VR
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