Veterans Day 2009: Thank you
Happy Veterans Day to all who have served our great nation. Thank you for your courage and dedication. Thank you for our freedom. We can’t say it enough.
Applebee’s honors vets and active duty military with a free meal today. Krispy Kreme is doing the same. Or take a vet out to McCormack & Schmick’s or Golden Corral for a special dinner.
Must-read Veterans Day tributes at milblog Mudville Gazette and from Blackfive’s Matt Burden, who reminds us: “It’s about the living.”
To honor our wounded troops, make sure you pitch in at Project Valour-IT. Today’s the last day of the annual fundraiser.
A few years ago, I had the great honor and thrill of interviewing several of the surviving WWII Doolittle Raiders for Hot Air. Watch the clip here. I asked Lt. Col. Dick Cole, Jimmy Doolittle’s co-pilot, for his thoughts on America at war today. He answered bluntly:
“We’re at war. We ought to get on a war footing and get the job done.”
From Lt Col. Cole’s lips to the White House’s ears…
***
Doctor Zero on “The Eleventh Hour:”
On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of 2009, the wounded of Fort Hood will remember their fallen friends, and wonder how a man wrapped in enough red flags to turn him into a bloody mummy was allowed to infiltrate their base. Those wounded and dead rely upon us to ask the questions their superiors in the chain of command cannot comfortably answer. Calling the injured and dead of Fort Hood “victims” perpetuates the blindness that compelled those men and women to face the enemy unarmed. They are casualties of war… and as far as I’m concerned, Sergeant Kimberly Munley, who took their cowardly attacker down, is a veteran today.
The terrorist enemy doesn’t have a formal chain of command that can sign an armistice, they don’t muster on clearly defined battlefields, and they’re quite happy to benefit from the efforts of deranged fanboys. If we don’t stand behind our professional soldiers, and give them the tools to do their jobs now, we will all become soldiers before this enemy is defeated.
Somewhere in the world tomorrow, an American soldier will ring in the eleventh hour of the eleventh day with gunfire. Another will arrive home after an honorable tour of duty, perhaps passing brothers and sisters in arms saying farewell to their families. A mother’s tears will fall on a letter from the far side of the world. Old veterans will spend a beautiful afternoon watching children play beneath the flag they raised at Anzio, Guadalcanal, Incheon, or Khe Sanh. Young veterans will put their lives on the line, to give the children of Iraq and Afghanistan a chance at a future free from murderous evil. A little girl will playfully salute a uniform she will one day grow up to wear. A pilot will land a machine that was impossible in his grandfather’s day on the heaving deck of an aircraft carrier. The USS New York will ride at anchor, close to the site of the fallen buildings whose bones became her steel.
The veterans of the United States military have always been there for us, in the desperate eleventh hour of our need.
Be there for them.
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Thank YOU young lady for always being there for us Vets and our active duty personnel.
As I left work yesterday, I was surprised at the number of people who took the time to thank me for my service. I can not tell you how much that means.
A big thank you to all our Veterans, our active duty personel, and those who support us.
US Army Veteran
Sgt E5
1961-1067
Most of us who served understand and see the danger of Obama and his new Demcommunist party. We must all pray to God for the strength and wisdom that we can network, organize and awaken enough people to take our country back from these manchurian candidates.
God bless our veterans past and present.
US Army Retired
1982-2006
Michelle: Don’t forget Outback Steakhouse. They’re not offering a full dinner, but Vets and active duty can get a free Bloomin Onion and beverage.
My heartfelt thanks to all of our nation’s military personnel for their service to our country.
Hugs and Airkisses to all our beloved Veterans and their Families.
To those that never made it back,
you are not forgotten you live in our hearts and Prayers.
Thank you for making America the best nation on this planet and providing freedom to BILLIONS.
a bloomin onion? cmon outback toss some shrimp on that barbie or some red meat for the Veterans!
Our family thanks all veterans this day and every day.
May God bless you and your family for your valor, dedication, service and sacrifice to our great nation.
I’m taking a veteran buddy of mine out to dinner this weekend. Not everyone can afford to do so, but maybe a drink or something.
Wow! Google has a custom logo today. They must have been infiltrated by a ‘teabagger’.
From one military veteran to one of our current warriors: your service to our nation is belittled and ridiculed daily by those who enjoy the fruits of freedom, they despise you and spit upon you because you name names, speak truth and by your actions uphold freedom each day. It is with heartfelt gratitude that I thank you and salute you for the service you perform daily in the name of freedom. Thank you Michelle.
We can never thank them enough. This WWII Gold Star sister still cries hearing Taps and especially yesterday watching the services. God bless America and veterans everywhere.
If you cannot stand behind them, stand in front of them.
God bless and Godspeed to all veterans, past, present and future!
God Bless our troops and God Bless America!
God bless all our Veterans and those serving today. In my heart, every day is Veterans Day. I met a woman yesterday who gives all of you the “heart salute”. I give you my “heart salute”, too. Thank you from my heart.
I have and will continue to thank all of my friends and co-workers (several of whom got a hearty Happy Birthday yesterday) for their service to this great country. For without them, this forum would not be possible.
And list I forget, a hearty Thank You to all of the veterans who post here. I am humbled to be in your presence.
I would also be remiss if I didn’t thank our gracious and wonderful hostess, Mrs. Malkin, for being resolute and strong in the face of all the idiocy slung her way.
Someone comes to mind for that very job…
Thank you Michelle. I am so sad I have to miss our Veteran’s Day ceremony at school today. Our kids put on a great program to honor the veterans.
Well said Col. Cole and thank you. There was a time we did that.
And for we long of tooth- It’s Armistice Day too.
BabiesGrandpa and BabiesGrandma are both veterans. We went to a Veterans presentation yesterday at a local elementary school, along with other veterans. Bunch of us now. Used to be only a few.
All the of the children walked by and shook our hands. We passed out Poppies. They learned how to say “Thank You” in sign language, and thanked us, silently, and with their words.
Proud of my heritage. Worried about our country.
Michelle:
BRAVO ZULU for all you do.
Can say no more than thank you, vets; and God bless you.
Michelle, thank you again for your kind words for those of us that have bet on this country with our lives. To my fellow veteran’s enjoy the day off (provided you have the opportunity) thanks for your service and sacrifice on behalf of this great nation. For the current generation serving in far off places unable to stand down you are not forgotten and many of us pray for your safe return to your loved ones daily.
SMSgt, US Air Force (Retired), 18 Jul 75 – 30 Sep 00
Thank you!
I don’t know, I served in the Air Force while Clinton was in office, so I don’t really feel like it was honest military service. My daughter is swearing in with the Air Force this month, so she’ll be working in barry hussien’s owsla, but I got a good feeling he won’t be there for all four years of her first term….
God Bless all our of our Vets, and our active military men and women. You have our eternal gratitude.
Shim,
Every man woman and child that has fought to create this great nation and preserve her is a Veteran.
Every man woman and child who stayed at home and served in their heart and Prayers along side of them are Veterans.
While I understand some make this day about those that are living, those that are gone are to be 4ever thanked as well.
Is here some rule that this is just about W2 and since? if so to me that is crap.
Even robbers are thankful for our veterans and active duty personnel.
To those who are forever in the field and on patrol…….. we thank you.
Blessed Veteran’s day to all who served. To the veteran I loved the most. RIP Dad and love you forever.
A very hearty thank you from my family and myself to all the service men today and yesterday. You will never be forgotten. Thank-you for your service from this US citizen.
As they used to say on “Hee-Haw”,
SA-LUTE!
The sacrifice of our veterans, throughout our history can never possibly be understated. Every right that we have, our liberty and freedom, and the liberty and freedom of billions around the globe is owed 100% to the American military. I feel that there is not enough recognition of that in our own Country.
Happy Veterans Day to all that have served, and their families.
I vomited drunk in Mombassa, Kenya back in 1986 when I was in the Navy. I had been at sea for about 3 months, and a bottle of gin didn’t react well with me.
That is even more special now that Dear Leader is Kenyan or Kenyan-American.
And for you leftists who “loath the military” but would still like a free meal, Applebee’s management said that if you didn’t have ID, they wouldn’t call you a liar, even if you are.
A THANK YOU to America’s bravest and strongest, for being the bravest and strongest!
My Dad didn’t talk much about the war in the Pacific. He did relate 2 stories once. A sniper nearly got him; missed him by a couple of inches. A couple of times, a Japanese, who let hunger get the better of him, would see the hot chow and get into line. Dad would laugh when he said the cook would hold a knife on him with one hand, and ladle the food into his plate with the other. He, along with so many other WW2 vets, are gone now. They made a huge sacrifice for freedom in the 40s. One wonders if today, our new generation could ever be like them.
HuffPo and Thinkprogress are honoring our vets by pushing another bogus study on how a jillion veterans per year are dying from lack of health insurance.
The study is by those liars at Physicians for a National Health Program.
God Bless my son serving in Iraq, God Bless our troops serving all over the world and God Bless America!
I’ve felt so blessed to welcome home relatives returning from battle, heartbroken for those that didn’t, and scared beyond belief for those returning severely injured.
My very humblest thank you to all that served. God bless you and your families for a sacrifice no civilian can ever understand.
While my heart is overflowing with gratitude for the many veterans who have served this great nation – past and present – it is also saddened, recalling the history of this holiday:
World War I – the war to end all wars is what many dubbed it.
Yet wars and rumours of wars have been with us my entire life, and still there is no end in sight.
So I pray for the day that our soldiers and sailors and airmen can finally beat their swords into plowshares, and we all know the blessing of real peace.
Meanwhile, God bless and keep you all.
P.S. BabiesGrandpa has a Purple Heart. Sniper in Viet Nam. He says that when the bullet has your name on it, you can see it coming. And watch it hit.
He stood very tall at that school yesterday. I salute him, and love him.
To our active duty brothers and sisters, thank you for all that you do and may you be blessed this Veterans Day.
“As you are now, I once was. As I am now, you will soon be” It has once been said, that freedom has a special taste that the protected will never know.
GSP
HM1(AW) USN Ret
1986-2006
Michelle,
I just returned from my daughters school (Johnson Creek, WI) where they had a program for us veterans. There were veterans from all wars starting with WWII on. I hope very much to get a copy of the video made since I would like to pass it on. My daughter is in the 5th grade, and this is her first year in public school (as well as for my son who is a freshman) since they were home schooled until this year.
It was a very nice program where all veterans lined up in the hallway with our children, while children from grades 1 through 5 were already in the gymnasium for the program.
When it started, we walked into the gym with their choir signing America the Beautiful, and kids in the school who were in the Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts lining the way we walked waving little flags.
We all walked to the front where we were seated, then each veteran was recognized. A few kids gave presentations on Taps, Taps was played by one of the students, and other comments were made.
The best part was when they announced the music teacher had a musical presentation and she started playing something on a CD player. It sounded like a normal patriotic song, but then every kid in the gym started singing “If you love your Country thank a vet”, “If you love your Freedom thank a vet”.
It was incredible, and I immediately thought of what a great contrast it was to the Obama cultists in many public schools singing praises to him.
It made me proud to live in such a community.
To those who served, THANK YOU.
To those currently serving, these kids are a great reason to do so, and I THANK YOU sincerely for doing so.
My country,’ tis of thee,
sweet land of liberty,
of thee I sing;
land where my fathers died,
land of the pilgrims’ pride,
from every mountainside
let freedom ring!
Let music swell the breeze,
and ring from all the trees
sweet freedom’s song;
let mortal tongues awake;
let all that breathe partake;
let rocks their silence break,
the sound prolong.
Our fathers’ God, to thee,
author of liberty,
to thee we sing;
long may our land be bright
with freedom’s holy light;
protect us by thy might,
great God, our King.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFBzNibOl78
Thank you to all our Veterans on this special day. Thank you to the Doolittle Raiders, The Code Talkers, and all Veterans past.
God Bless those in Iraq & Afghanistan.
I love that saying. Can I start a list of the rats who should stand in front of these brave men and women?
Start with Barrack Hussein Obama, mmm mmm mmm.
I am old enough to remember my MOTHER calling this ARMISTICE DAY… To all the vets, especially the ones from WWII, if I did not say thank you today… THANK YOU!!! To all the vets from my era PEACE AND LOVE BROTHERS AND SISTERS…
My heartfelt respect and thanks to all our Veterans on this and every other day. God bless you.
After Pearl Harbor, my Daddy enlisted in the Paratroopers. He had a wife and three small kids. I was just 2 years old. He was gone for a few years and I seldom saw him. He would come home on leave and I wouldn’t go to him because he wasn’t my Daddy, the picture on the wall was my Daddy. His two brothers served also and one of them was a prisoner of War in Germany for 6 months. They didn’t know if he was dead or alive. All three of the brothers came home safe. God bless our military and may we soon be able to give them a better Commander-in-Chief!!!
An amazing Veteran’s Day story from The Southwest. A story worth investigating.
Called the maternal unit to offer my thanks for her service.
What I wouldn’t give to be able to call the paternal unit to thank him too.
/salute
I haven’t used Google in months. I switched over to Bing and I’m quite happy with it. I do a lot of searches too.
I suppose they should get a C for effort. To me, I couldn’t tell what the image was…it looked like someone seeing a business man off on the train to Wall Street. I had to zoom in on the picture quite a ways to see it was a little boy with a flag in his hand saluting what I suppose would be someone in uniform.
It’s as if they are a little embarrassed to be too overt about it.
I vomited powdered eggs.
***
GREAT PHOTO of those who served our country over the last 232+ years. Thank you vets for your sacrifice for our country–WELL DONE! May God bless and keep safe those who are on Active Duty now. May He protect and guide their families during their absence from them.
***
My Dad and Uncle were Navy aviators in WW2 in the South Pacific. My Brother served in the Air National Guard during the Vietnam era. I was a U.S. Army draftee from 1964–1966.
***
One of my church members is an old Army soldier who was at Pearl Harbor–age 16 then–when the Japanese attacked us. He lied about his age to get into the service.
***
One co-worker was a P51 Mustang fighter plane pilot in WW2 over France and Germany. I attended his funeral at Ft. Bliss, Tx. National Cemetary last year.
***
Another church member was an Army Major who broke his ankle when his ranger group was airdropped into France on D-day. His job was to mine and hold a bridge to keep the Nazis from using it to get to the beaches. And to keep it available for the breakout later. He fought on the ankle for 10 days before he got medical help.
***
All brave Americans–I remember and miss them all.
***
John Bibb
***
Veterans Day Remembering The Pacific Theater WWII my father.
Thank you, Dad
Thank you, Uncle Jim
Thank you, Uncle Mort
Thank you, Uncle Bill
Thank you, Uncle Dave
Thank you, Uncle Maynard
Thank you, Uncle Lou
Thank you, Uncle Brian
Thank you, Uncle Kevin
(2 Silver Stars, 4 Bronze Stars, and 9 Purple Hearts in the group above)
Thank you, honey, for dealing with the separation and loneliness, and for never letting the kids forget who dad was. Thanks also for the perfumed letters, even though the guys rode me endlessly about it.
Thanks mom, and my sisters, for the holiday CARE packages. I’ve had the pleasure of watching grown men cry over banana nut bread and being away from home.
Thanks, Joe, for being my friend. I think of you often. I visited you in Arlington when we came to D.C. last.
Everything I do is because of the examples set by the people above. They are the real heroes and this is as much their day as anyones.
Thank you to all you Vets! Oh, Veterans too! Kidding!
Courtesy of Neptunus Lex, here is a moving tribute to the passing Greatest Generation:
http://www.neptunuslex.com/2008/11/11/the-war-was-in-color/
God bless you too, WS!! Good to see a post from you!
This post gave me major goosebumps!! I want to add a big thank you to my Great-Grandfather x 5 and his son, my Great-Grandfather x4 for their service in the American Revolution. Also, my Great-Grandfather for his service in the Civil War. Many many more patriots in my family, too numerous to mention, but not to numerous to THANK GOD for.
And, THANK YOU, BIGURN!
As a veteran and current active duty member, I appreciate all the well wishes; Thank you, and know I consider my countrymen and women worthy of the sacrifice. That said, if you really want to show appreciation become a US Constitutional Scholar, teach the next generation about our founding principles and FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT against those who want to dismantle our way of life.
They also serve who stand and vote.
I’ll bet if you stood outside a public school and handed out copies of the Constitution as kids went home you’d be investigated…
AlohaGuy, you are likely correct. I believe it should be issued to Junior High Schoolers, along with the federalist Papers, as a gift and reference book.
The Air National Guard just went overhead on their way to Punchbowl – the National Cemetary of the Pacific. Always gives me a lump in my throat.
Absolutely. And an exam covering both required for a teaching certificate.
Sorry, misspelled Cemetery at the worst possible time.
If one considers that at any given time — even when you throw in the reserves — less than 1% of this country’s population wears the uniform, every day should be “thank a current of future vet” day.
Seldom in the history of our species have so many benefited from the voluntary efforts of so few.
If you like your freedom …
THANK A SOLDIER.
Thanks to all soldiers everywhere. Your sacrifice is deeply appreciated.
RWR
http://www.rightwingrocker.com
Here’s a couple of little guys with some special sentiments for you!
(click to play, click
on envelopes)
p.s. sorry the link is so fat.
http://www.hallmark.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ECardPersonalizeView?eo=true&topNav=false&personalizePage=true&categoryId=183075&URL=ECardPersonalizeView&partNumber=nfg1943_DK&s=nfg1943&r=&p=&ssd=Listen+Up%2C+Troops%21&n=DEFAULT&st=%2Fproducts%2Fecards%2Fnfg1943_120.gif&productId=128947&tabOn=ecards&catalogId=10051&sn=Listen+Up%2C+Troops%21&cardType=free&e=DEFAULT&storeId=10001&date=DEFAULT&mid=7000000000000000051&nv=true&template=o&CatIDsList=147551%3B-102001%3B11443%3B-102034%3B183075
Tomorrow is national Trolls Need Love Too Day.
Wow! security must be sleeping at google.
I use scroogle myself
A heartfelt thank you to all the vets.
It’s nice to see some attempt to change the Google logo. It’s better than noting. I wish they would have maybe just show the fact that the green pants person was a soldier.
I didn’t go online at all yesterday, so this comes a day after Veterans’ Day, but veterans are worthy of our thanks each and every day…
Thank you to all veterans who have ever served this country!