From The Front

I am always eager to hear from the guys who are actually doing the work. As a police supervisor I wanted to hear form my men what was going down, how they accomplished their assignments within the parameters of the orders they were given. Even if I couldn't change a thing I wanted them to know that I was listening and had a healthy interest in what they had to say. This is extremely important for morale and helps ensure that if there is a problem brewing, enough people trust you enough to let you know before it gets out of hand.

So on two different fronts I am glad to hear from the people directly involved in saving our asses.

From Arizona:

Sheriff Larry Dever, whose officers patrol Cochise County along the border between Arizona and Mexico, said he finds it “amazing” that the U.S. State Department would refer the recently passed immigration law in his state to the United Nations Human Rights Council for review.

“Well, it’s just amazing to me,” Dever told CNSNews.com. “Course, I have about as much regard for the U.N. as I do the vermin that hides in the rocks around my house here and reaches out and tries to bite me every now and then."

Well said sir!

And from our armed forces:

As he winds down one war and escalates another, President Obama is struggling to win over the troops he's leading as commander in chief -- and military advocates say the real test will come as the nation approaches final timelines for withdrawal in Iraq and Afghanistan.

[...]His progress among members of the military, however, has been slower. A Military Times poll this year of its subscribers -- which include active-duty, reserves and guard troops, and some retirees and family members -- found that a majority disapproved of his leadership as their commander.

Pete Hegseth, an Iraqi war vet, states that Obama appears to be taking credit for a troop withdrawal deal that was made under the Bush administration.

Mr. Hegseth said he has spoken with troops who are particularly annoyed by the administration's move to de-emphasize the radical Islamic dimension of the terrorist threat in favor of the term "extremist," and he described the July 2011 timeline for withdrawal in Afghanistan as an "albatross around the neck of our soldiers."

Also, well said sir!

I found out within the past few days that my daughter, Soldier Girl, will be going to Afghanistan within the next two months. I trust God that she will be returned to us safe and sound. She finally got out of training this month but her unit has already deployed. She was very disappointed that the Army changed her orders when she arrived at Fort Bragg. She didn't get assigned to a Combat Brigade in the 82nd AB as her original orders stated when she left Goodfellow AFB.

I know I cannot rely upon this administration to do what's right or even to describe what is happening with any degree of accuracy. But I know I can trust my Lord and Savior. And I believe that is also well said.

Emergency Donations Needed

Cookie sent me an email that I must respond to and I hope you feel moved to do likewise.

Our soldiers are facing incredible challenges as our enemies become emboldened by a traitorous administration, hazardous deloyments mount and they survive injuries that would have proved fatal a generation ago. But their blessed survival means something else - crippling injuries that maim and disfigure them physically and emotionally.

Our vets rely upon the government to help them through service-related crisis, and we all know how reliable the government is if you are not a major political donor, a Black Panther or an illegal alien.

Apparently the VA's disability claims system has collapsed with a backlog of over 1 million claims. Wounded troops who have been discharged from the military have to wait an average of six months to get their first disability check. Those who appeal the size of their check can wait for years.

So please drop by this site and evaluate the The Coalition to Salute America's Heroes. These are good people who provide:

[...] emergency financial aid and other assistance to troops who have been severely wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The Coalition focuses on helping servicemen and women with the most debilitating injuries, such as those who have been severely burned, blinded, paralyzed or brain-damaged.

There are literally hundreds of groups such as The Coalition who seek to help wounded GI's and their families. I can't list them all here but here are some sites that provide an index for many of them.

SupportOurTroops

Military.com

Please be generous.

Could It Happen?

I got to admit, I have been thinking along these lines ever since Obongo started tearing at the Constitution like a raccoon trying to get claw his way into your garbage can.

Who knows, it's possible...

From iOwnTheWorld:

Full Text Of Newsmax Column Suggesting Military Coup Against Obama

Here is the full text of John L. Perry’s column on Newsmax which suggests that a military coup to “resolve the Obama problem” is becoming more possible and is not “unrealistic.” Perry also writes that a coup, while not “ideal,” may be preferable to “Obama’s radical ideal” — and would “restore and defend the Constitution.” Newsmax has since removed the column from its website.
Obama Risks a Domestic Military Intervention

By: John L. Perry

There is a remote, although gaining, possibility America’s military will intervene as a last resort to resolve the “Obama problem.” Don’t dismiss it as unrealistic.

America isn’t the Third World. If a military coup does occur here it will be civilized. That it has never happened doesn’t mean it wont. Describing what may be afoot is not to advocate it. So, view the following through military eyes:

# Officers swear to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” Unlike enlisted personnel, they do not swear to “obey the orders of the president of the United States.”

# Top military officers can see the Constitution they are sworn to defend being trampled as American institutions and enterprises are nationalized.

# They can see that Americans are increasingly alarmed that this nation, under President Barack Obama, may not even be recognizable as America by the 2012 election, in which he will surely seek continuation in office.

# They can see that the economy — ravaged by deficits, taxes, unemployment, and impending inflation — is financially reliant on foreign lender governments.

# They can see this president waging undeclared war on the intelligence community, without whose rigorous and independent functions the armed services are rendered blind in an ever-more hostile world overseas and at home.

# They can see the dismantling of defenses against missiles targeted at this nation by avowed enemies, even as America’s troop strength is allowed to sag.

# They can see the horror of major warfare erupting simultaneously in two, and possibly three, far-flung theaters before America can react in time.

# They can see the nation’s safety and their own military establishments and honor placed in jeopardy as never before.

So, if you are one of those observant military professionals, what do you do?

Wait until this president bungles into losing the war in Afghanistan, and Pakistan’s arsenal of nuclear bombs falls into the hands of militant Islam?

Wait until Israel is forced to launch air strikes on Iran’s nuclear-bomb plants, and the Middle East explodes, destabilizing or subjugating the Free World?

What happens if the generals Obama sent to win the Afghan war are told by this president (who now says, “I’m not interested in victory”) that they will be denied troops they must have to win? Do they follow orders they cannot carry out, consistent with their oath of duty? Do they resign en masse?

Or do they soldier on, hoping the 2010 congressional elections will reverse the situation? Do they dare gamble the national survival on such political whims?

Anyone who imagines that those thoughts are not weighing heavily on the intellect and conscience of America’s military leadership is lost in a fool’s fog.

Will the day come when patriotic general and flag officers sit down with the president, or with those who control him, and work out the national equivalent of a “family intervention,” with some form of limited, shared responsibility?

Imagine a bloodless coup to restore and defend the Constitution through an interim administration that would do the serious business of governing and defending the nation. Skilled, military-trained, nation-builders would replace accountability-challenged, radical-left commissars. Having bonded with his twin teleprompters, the president would be detailed for ceremonial speech-making.

Military intervention is what Obama’s exponentially accelerating agenda for “fundamental change” toward a Marxist state is inviting upon America. A coup is not an ideal option, but Obama’s radical ideal is not acceptable or reversible.

Unthinkable? Then think up an alternative, non-violent solution to the Obama problem. Just don’t shrug and say, “We can always worry about that later.”

In the 2008 election, that was the wistful, self-indulgent, indifferent reliance on abnegation of personal responsibility that has sunk the nation into this morass.

Men Of Honor

Found this wonderful comparison at OpiniPundit -- it's so true...

The US Military is just about the only American institution that can be trusted anymore.

Col. Robert L. Howard

The most highly decorated American soldier in modern history is honored in this NBC news story by Brian Williams.

Col. Robert Howard was wounded 14 times in 54 months. He was awarded 8 Purple Hearts.

This is no John Kerry p-p-pantywaist poser who tosses someone else's medals. Col. Howard is the Real Deal. A full blown American Hero. A tribute site is here. The video clip is amazing - please take the tinme to experience this man's life. Col. Howard's Medal of Honor citation is as follows.

The President of the United States in the name of The Congress takes pride in presenting the MEDAL OF HONOR to

FIRST LIEUTENANT
ROBERT L. HOWARD
UNITED STATES ARMY

for service as set forth in the following CITATION:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. 1st Lt. Howard (then Sfc .), distinguished himself while serving as platoon sergeant of an American-Vietnamese platoon which was on a mission to rescue a missing American soldier in enemy controlled territory in the Republic of Vietnam. The platoon had left its helicopter landing zone and was moving out on its mission when it was attacked by an estimated 2-company force. During the initial engagement, 1st Lt. Howard was wounded and his weapon destroyed by a grenade explosion. 1st Lt. Howard saw his platoon leader had been wounded seriously and was exposed to fire. Although unable to walk, and weaponless, 1st Lt. Howard unhesitatingly crawled through a hail of fire to retrieve his wounded leader. As 1st Lt. Howard was administering first aid and removing the officer's equipment, an enemy bullet struck 1 of the ammunition pouches on the lieutenant's belt, detonating several magazines of ammunition. 1st Lt. Howard momentarily sought cover and then realizing that he must rejoin the platoon, which had been disorganized by the enemy attack, he again began dragging the seriously wounded officer toward the platoon area. Through his outstanding example of indomitable courage and bravery, 1st Lt. Howard was able to rally the platoon into an organized defense force. With complete disregard for his safety, 1st Lt. Howard crawled from position to position, administering first aid to the wounded, giving encouragement to the defenders and directing their fire on the encircling enemy. For 3 1/2 hours 1st Lt. Howard's small force and supporting aircraft successfully repulsed enemy attacks and finally were in sufficient control to permit the landing of rescue helicopters. 1st Lt. Howard personally supervised the loading of his men and did not leave the bullet-swept landing zone until all were aboard safely. 1st Lt. Howard's gallantry in action, his complete devotion to the welfare of his men at the risk of his life were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on himself,
his unit, and the U.S. Army.

His medals and awards are as follows:

Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross (with one oak leaf cluster) (2 awards), Silver Star, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit (with three oak leaf clusters) (4 awards), Bronze Star (with three oak leaf clusters and "V" device) (4 awards), Purple Heart (with a silver and two bronze oak leaf clusters) (8 awards), Meritorious Service Medal (with two oak leaf clusters) (3 awards), Air Medal (with "V" Device and numeral 3 - one award for heroism and two for aerial achievement), Joint Service Commendation, Army Commendation Medal (with "V" device and one each silver and bronze oak leaf clusters - 4 awards for valor and 3 for achievement), Joint Service Achievement, Army Achievement, Good Conduct Medal with four Good Conduct Loops (4 awards), National Defense Service Medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal with three service stars (3 awards),Vietnam Service Medal with 3 service stars (3 campaigns), Armed Forces Reserve Medal, NCO Professional Development Ribbon, Army Service Ribbon, and the Army Overseas Service Ribbon.

This is truly an amazing man, an incredible hero.

He passed on to his Eternal Award on December 23, 2009.

Rest in Glory Colonel.

H/T Goomba News Network

Asleep At The Helm

This should never happen. Lax discipline leads to an accident where military personnel could have been injured.

The crew aboard a U.S. submarine made dozens of errors before the vessel collided with an American warship in the Persian Gulf, an accident that exposed lax leaders who tolerated sleeping, slouching and a radio room rigged with music speakers, a Navy review found.

I'm gonna check with Cookie on this and if any other submariner has any information on how a submarine is run, please drop a line. I would think that submarine duty is particularly hazardous and that strict discipline is maintained for the safety of the crew.

Navy investigators placed blame for the March collision on the submarine's ineffective and negligent command leadership," including what they called a lack of standards and failure to adequately plan for crossing the busy Strait of Hormuz.

Hopefully, and I trust it is true, this example is the exception rather than the rule. From the Navy Times:

Damage to a submarine involved in a grounding accident off the coast of Italy is worse than officials initially expected, sources told The Day of New London.

Most of the bottom half of the rudder is torn off, and gouges in the hull are deep enough to raise concerns about the structural integrity of the USS Hartford, the newspaper reported.

The damage occurred in October when the Hartford was conducting training drills in the channel as it departed La Maddalena and wandered outside the channel when the navigation team went too long without updating the ship's chart position, sources told the newspaper.

[...] The commodore of Submarine Squadron 22 in La Maddalena, Capt. Greg Parker, and the ship's captain, Cmdr. Christopher R. Van Metre, were both relieved of command Nov. 9. Six crewmen who were part of the navigation party received punishments for dereliction of duty.

I am wondering if the Navy is going to conduct a review of operational readiness and competency throughout the various commands. In any event, the investigation is still continuing.

From a Recon Marine in Afghanistan

Charlie da ChiTown Cop sent me this. A real hero wrote it.
Please take a minute to read this. You won't be disappointed.

From a Recon Marine in Afghanistan
From the Sand Pit

It's freezing here. I'm sitting on hard, cold dirt between rocks and shrubs at the base of the Hindu Kush Mountains , along the Dar 'yoi Pomir River , watching a hole that leads to a tunnel that leads to a cave. Stake out, my friend, and no pizza delivery for thousands of miles.

I also glance at the area around my ass every ten to fifteen seconds to avoid another scorpion sting. I've actually given up battling the chiggers and sand fleas, but them scorpions give a jolt like a cattle prod. Hurts like a bastard. The antidote tastes like transmission fluid, but God bless the Marine Corps for the five vials of it in my pack.

The one truth the Taliban cannot escape is that, believe it or not, they are human beings, which means they have to eat food and drink water. That requires couriers and that's where an old bounty hunter like me comes in handy. I track the couriers, locate the tunnel entrances and storage facilities, type the info into the handheld, shoot the coordinates up to the satellite link that tells the air commanders where to drop the hardware. We bash some heads for a while, then I track and record the new movement.

It's all about intelligence. We haven't even brought in the snipers yet.

These scurrying rats have no idea what they're in for. We are but days away from cutting off supply lines and allowing the eradication to begin.

I dream of bin Laden waking up to find me standing over him with my boot on his throat as I spit into his face and plunge my nickel-plated Bowie knife through his frontal lobe. But you know me, I'm a romantic. I've said it before and I'll say it again: This country blows, man. It's not even a country. There are no roads, there's no infrastructure, there's no government. This is an inhospitable, rock pit shit hole ruled by eleventh century warring tribes. There are no jobs here like we know jobs.

Afghanistan offers two ways for a man to support his family: join the opium trade or join the army. That's it. Those are your options. Oh, I forgot, you can also live in a refugee camp and eat plum-sweetened, crushed beetle paste and squirt mud like a goose with stomach flu, if that's your idea of a party. But the smell alone of those 'tent cities of the walking dead' is enough to hurl you into the poppy fields to cheerfully scrape bulbs for eighteen hours a day.

I've been living with these Tajiks and Uzbeks, and Turkmen and even a couple of Pushtuns, for over a month-and-a- half now, and this much I can say for sure: These guys, all of 'em, are Huns... actual, living Huns. They LIVE to fight. It's what they do. It's ALL they do. They have no respect for anything, not for their families, nor for each other, nor for themselves. They claw at one another as a way of life. They play polo with dead calves and force their five-year-old sons into human cockfights to defend the family honor. Huns, roaming packs of savage, heartless beasts who feed on each other's barbarism. Cavemen with AK-47's.

Then again, maybe I'm just cranky.

I'm freezing my ass off on this stupid hill because my lap warmer is running out of juice, and I can't recharge it until the sun comes up in a few hours. Oh yeah! You like to write letters, right? Do me a favor, Bizarre. Write a letter to CNN and tell Wolf and Anderson and that awful, sneering, pompous Aaron Brown to stop calling the Taliban 'smart.' They are not smart. I suggest CNN invest in a dictionary because the word they are looking for is 'cunning.'

The Taliban are cunning, like jackals and hyenas and wolverines.. They are sneaky and ruthless, and when confronted, cowardly. They are hateful, malevolent parasites who create nothing and destroy everything else. Smart.. Pfft. Yeah, they're real smart.

They've spent their entire lives reading only one book (and not a very good one, as books go) and consider hygiene and indoor plumbing to be products of the devil.

They're still figuring out how to work a Bic lighter. Talking to a Taliban warrior about improving his quality of life is like trying to teach an ape how to hold a pen; eventually he just gets frustrated and sticks you in the eye with it.

OK, enough. Snuffle will be up soon, so I have to get back to my hole. Covering my tracks in the snow takes a lot of practice, but I'm good at it.

Please, I tell you and my fellow Americans to turn off the TV sets and move on with your lives. The story line you are getting from CNN and other news agencies is utter bullshit and designed not to deliver truth but rather to keep you glued to the screen through the commercials. We've got this one under control. The worst thing you guys can do right now is sit around analyzing what we're doing over here, because you have no idea what we're doing, and really, you don't want to know. We are your military, and we are doing what you sent us here to do.

You wanna help? Tell Obama to get off his a** and send the troops we asked for. Also, Buy Bonds America .

Saucy Jack
Recon Marine in Afghanistan
Semper Fi

"Freedom is not free...but the U.S. Marine Corps will pay most of your share".

Waiting For The Movie

Charlie the Cop sent me this:

For those who are unaware, at a military theater, the National Anthem is played before every movie.

I recently attended a showing of 'Superman 3' here at LSA Anaconda. We have a large auditorium we use for movies, as well as memorial services and other large gatherings. As is the custom back in the States, we stood and snapped to attention when the National Anthem began before the main feature. All was going as planned until about three-quarters of the way through The National Anthem the music stopped.

Now, what would happen if this occurred with 1,000 18-22 year-olds back in the States? I imagine there would be hoots, catcalls, laughter, a few rude comments; and everyone would sit down and call for a movie. Of course, that is, if they had stood for the National Anthem in the first place.

Here, the 1,000 Soldiers continued to stand at attention, eyes fixed forward. The music started again. The Soldiers continued to quietly stand at attention. And again, at the same point, the music stopped.. What would you expect to happen? Even here I would imagine laughter, as everyone finally sat down and expected the movie to start.

But here, you could have heard a pin drop. Every Soldier continued to stand at attention. Suddenly there was a lone voice, then a dozen, and quickly the room was filled with the voices of a thousand soldiers, finishing where the recording left off:

"And the rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh, say does that Star Spangled Banner yet wave, o'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave."

It was the most inspiring moment I have had here in Iraq . I wanted you to know what kind of Soldiers are serving you here. Remember them as they fight for you!

Pass this along as a reminder to others to be ever in prayer for all our soldiers serving us here at home and abroad. For many have already paid the ultimate price...

Written by Chaplain Jim Higgins

LSA Anaconda is at the Ballad Airport in Iraq , north of Baghdad

To Those Who Are, And Were, Soldiers

Sgt. MacKenzie

Lay me down in the cold cold ground
Where before many more have gone
Lay me down in the cold cold ground
Where before many more have gone

When they come I will stand my ground
Stand my ground I’ll not be afraid
Thoughts of home take away my fear
Sweat and blood hide my veil of tears

Once a year say a prayer for me
Close your eyes and remember me
Never more shall I see the sun
For I fell to a Germans gun

Lay me down in the cold cold ground
Where before many more have gone
Lay me down in the cold cold ground
Where before many more have gone

Where before many more have gone

In memory of Sgt. Charles Stuart MacKenzie
Seaforth Highlanders
Who along with many others gave up his life
So that we can live free
We will remember them

This Side Up, Or Out?

From 1961 1952 through 1971 my Dad, my sister, my brother-in-law and I all worked for Grumman's in Bethpage, Long Island, at one time or another. My brother is president of the local Experimental Aircraft Association and sent me this story about a Grumman plane that was being developed for the Navy in the 1930's.

EAA Chapter Chapter 44 in Rochester, New York had the good fortune to have Slim Reddig as one of its members. A veteran of the early days of aviation, his engineering expertise made him one of the Golden Age of Aviation's best known designers. A shining example of his work is the classic Fleetwings Seabird amphibian. Jim was an active member of Chapter 44, and Hugh Jones and fellow members recognized what a treasure they had in their midst. Jim passed away in 1994.

In the mid-30s the Navy was supporting development of three types of variable-pitch propeller the Hamilton-Standard hydraulic controlled system, the Curtiss Electric propeller, and the SMITH propeller that was operated entirely mechanically. The pilot had a manually operated control in the cockpit by which, through mechanism, he could vary the pitch of his propeller blades. Early Grumman biplane fighters joining the fleet were equipped with SMITH propellers. Remember those pregnant looking fat-bellied airplanes with retractable landing gear? And one of these,taking off from an aircraft carrier out of San Diego suffered loss of power on launch and went down into the sea directly ahead of the oncoming carrier. They had the good fortune to be able to get a line to the floating aircraft; legend leaves some doubt that the pilot even got his feet wet.

The airplane was promptly hosed down with fresh water and, brought ashore, was soon packaged onto a railroad car and shipped to the Naval Aircraft Factory at Philadelphia Navy Yard for cleaning, repair and refurbishment, inspection, flight test and return to the fleet. This included complete tear down examination of the SMITH propeller and re-assembly with the blades carefully reset to their proper pitch.

The reassembled airplane was test flown at Mustin Field, inspected and signed off for return to San Diego. While the assigned Navy ferry pilot had never flown one of the exciting, new Grumman fighters, no one seemed to have felt concern in the matter. Wa-a-ay off schedule, he staggered into the Great Lakes Naval Air Training station in Chicago and plunked the thing down.

Everybody was saying, 'Where the hell have you been,' etc. And he says, 'Guys, this is the first Grumman I've ever flown, and if this is the 'GREAT Grumman' I've been hearing so much about-it stinks.'"Well, now, Ensign, what's the trouble?"'It won't take off, it won't climb, it's got no ceiling, it runs hot and it vibrates like hell.'"Well, obviously, you don't know how to fly a Grumman, 'cause that's a great airplane. You stand down and get the Lieutenant here to take it onto the West Coast."

So again, way behind schedule, this Lieutenant makes it on into San Diego, but he has the look of being wrung out when he checks in. And he says, Guys, that airplane is all wrong. I have had it checked at five airfields on the way out here. TWA mechanics were good enough to come over and they went over it. And I've been in and out of it and there's something definitely wrong. It stinks! I had to land on the road and taxi across the Rocky Mountains! It didn't have enough ceiling to get over!

'They turned to some old aviation chief there and said, "Go look at the guy's airplane."He's back in 10 minutes, lit up like a lamp and he says, "Excuse me Lieutenant, you said you checked that airplane?"'Oh boy, have we checked it!'"You say TWA checked it, and American checked it, etc . ?"'Yeah.'"If I'm not asking too much Lieutenant," he says, "will you come out and look at the airplane with me?"They go out and the chief says, "Just look at it."'Yeah, well ... ?"

He couldn't' see anything wrong."Lieutenant, will you please step over and pull the engine through?"The minute he put his hands on the propeller, he lit up! He knew! His hands were curled over the rounded leading edge of the propeller! The SMITH was perhaps the only propeller in history where you could get the blades in backwards! The pitch of the blades had been set accurately at Philadelphia, on the big steel surface plates with big protractors and everything, but they were 180 degrees around!

And this thing had flown across the continent with the sharp trailing edge plowing ahead and the rounded part on the back. Of course, in the Navy, every incident gets written down on a piece of paper. The form was known as a Trouble Report. Roy (Grumman) had this thing, this Trouble Report saying, Propeller blades in backwards' framed and displayed for many years. His wonderful new airplane had just crossed the country with the propeller blades on backwards!

This is the aircraft in question, the Grumman F3F.

This is a classic plane because the Grumman F3F-3 was the last biplane fighter produced for the US Navy. The final version of this aircraft, the F3F-3:

came about because of delays in the development of the F4F. It incorporated a smaller diameter propeller, a modified cowling and a cockpit canopy similar to that used on the F4F. Only 27 of this version were ordered with the first aircraft being assigned to the carrier USS Yorktown (CV- 5). The entire series carried the same armament of one .30 cal. and one .50 cal. Browning machine gun mounted in the cowl.

By the end of 1941 none of the aircraft were in operational service, but 117 of them were distributed to various bases around the country for training and transport duties. The last plane, an F3F-2, was retired from flying service in November 1943.

Following the F3F, Navy fighters were monoplanes: the first of these were the Grumman F4F Wildcat and the Brewster F2A Buffalo. These planes saw action in the opening years of WWII, but were both outclassed by the Zero.

F4F Wildcat

F2A Buffalo

The New York Post

From Ralph Peters in the New York Post:

A YEAR ago this month, the Post ran a week-long series of columns on the courage and grit of our wounded troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. Their medical treatment was state of the art, but the "off duty" facilities serving them and their families were a shame.

Those who gave so much asked for nothing for themselves. Fortunately, others stepped in.

Brooke Army Medical Center staffers and benefactors in San Antonio, Texas, saw that the local one-room Warrior and Family Support Center that helped prepare badly wounded vets for their return to the "real world" was overwhelmed.

The good people of San Antonio needed four million dollars to renovate the facility to enable it to provide the services needed for out vets. Readers of the NY Post were invited to donate to this cause. And they responded.

When those profiles of our wounded warriors ran last December, you stepped up with contributions great and small. Post readers came through with about a million dollars - a quarter of the funding.

Despite the financial demands we all feel every holiday season, you gave to those who had given so much to us.

The result? On Dec. 1, military authorities received the keys to a magnificent 12,500-square-foot facility.

Instead of one crowded room up a flight of stairs, our wounded vets have a beautiful building specifically designed to meet their needs. The quality is impeccable - this "home" will be there for generations of vets. For once, our troops received a worthy thanks.

Congress, tax dollars and war profiteers didn't give it. You did.

[...]In these challenging times, it's easy to lapse into selfishness. We all have fears and worries. For some of us, this holiday season's a difficult one. But it's going to be a great deal better for hundreds of our wounded warriors because of what you did to welcome them home.

Amen to that and many thanks to the New York Post and it's many readers who saw the need and did something about it where others turned away.

For links to some of these articles go here, here and please check out the Wounded Warrior Project.

Winter Storm

We got about 8" of snow yesterday but fortunately the storm left the area about 1900 hr and the road crews did a wonderful job in keeping the highways clear. My Explorer got a work out earlier in the afternoon as things were kinda bad; the street I live on was unplowed but the Ford took me up the hill in 4X4 without a hitch. Sweet.

After suffering with my 1983 Ranger and putting up with my wife's 1978 T-Bird (yep - it's been awhile since a Ford's been parked in my driveway), I didn't think I would ever say this - but I really, really like my Ford.

Our daughter's plane from DC was delayed for a half hour and we didn't get back from the airport until almost midnight. But she looks great! She had a bunch of funny stories about her drill sergeants and classmates - so we stayed up yakking and laughing until the wee hours.

We were all packed into the little spare room where she is staying for two weeks (her 16 yo sister commandeered her bedroom downstairs as soon as she left for boot camp). It is just so good to see her at home even for a little while before the Army lays claim to her again. She is fit as a fiddle and was showing us the lengths her squaddies will go through to introduce the "Gun Show" - where they flex their biceps. For such a little thing she is tricked out I must admit.

Any how, the coffee's good this morning, the wife is in the shower and the kids' are all still abed. So I was perusing through some milblogs and stumbled across this at Strategy Page:

I know it ain't the same, but can you see this smashing through a snowbank in Upstate NY? I sure could. It's a Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Armored Vehicle plowing through sand dunes at a training course in Iraq.

It'll work.

Still Waiting...

I just got this from my brother.

According to a Marine Pilot:

In addition to communicating with the local Air Traffic Control Facility, All aircraft in the Persian Gulf AOR are required to give the Iranian Air Defense Radar (military) a ten minute 'heads up' if they will be Transiting Iranian airspace.

This is a common procedure for commercial aircraft and involves giving them your call sign, transponder code, type aircraft, and point of origin and destination.

I just flew with a guy who overheard this conversation on the VHF Guard (emergency) frequency 121.5 MHz while flying from Europe to Dubai .

It's too good not to pass along.

The conversation went something like this...

Irani Air Defense Radar: 'Unknown aircraft at (location unknown), you are in Iranian airspace. Identify yourself.'

Aircraft: 'This is a United States aircraft. I am in Iraqi airspace.'

Irani Air Defense Radar: 'You are in Iranian airspace. If you do not depart our airspace, we will launch interceptor aircraft!'

Aircraft: 'This is a United States Marine Corps F/A-18. Send 'em up. I'll wait!'

Irani Air Defense Radar: (No response ... Total silence)






Thanks Bro!

Bomb Proof Tires

I have always been fascinated by military technology. As a 12 yo kid I used to write to the various Secretaries of the armed services asking for information on their various eapons. I would always get a very nice letter from some undersecretary along with a thick packet of wonderful stuff showing tanks, planes, ships, etc.
Now that my kid is in the Army, my interest in innovative technology towards life saving military applications is even keener. This CNET News article is welcome news for anyone with a loved one who goes in harm's way.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Wausau, Wis., company have come up with a 37-inch, bullet- and a bomb-proof Humvee tire based on a polymeric web so cool looking there's no need for hub caps.

This is hawt.

Resilient Technologies and Wisconsin-Madison's Polymer Engineering Center are creating a "non-pneumatic tire" (no air required) that will support the weight of add-on armor, survive an IED attack, and still make a 50 mph getaway. It's basically a round honeycomb wrapped with a thick, black tread.

The military wants an alternative to the current Humvee "run flat" tires, which despite the name, still need a minimal amount of air pressure to roll and can leave troops stranded after being shot or blown out.

There will have to be a trial or shakedown period, of course; but I hope that this goes out to the troops ASAP.

Congrats To The Corps

Happy Birthday Marines! November 10, 1775.

UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS BIRTHDAY MESSAGE - 10 NOVEMBER 2008

Bravo Company Graduation, 1/48th Infantry Battalion

We returned home from Fort Leonard Wood last night around midnight. This morning we are pooped.

I don't know if I'll ever fly with Continental Airlines again. But I do know that I never want to step foot in the Newark Airport again.

Anyway, we left the house at 0715 to go to the airport and arrived at St. Louis around 1615. Once we got to St. Louis we were greeted by some of the nicest strangers you could ever meet. Then it was a two and a half hour drive to reach our Hampton Inn hotel in St. Roberts which is about four miles form Fort Leonard Wood. We checked in around 1900 , unpacked and got something to eat then collapsed in bed. Asleep by 2100.

We had a hasty breakfast and got to the base around 0710 the next morning. It's a good thing we left early. There was a two mile traffic jam in front of the base - tons of people going to work or attending other graduations.

We arrived at Baker Theater on Iowa Ave. and joined about 600-700 people who were there for their loved one's graduation. There were a few PR type videos and then the company Commander, Capt. Cole, introduced the graduates. He warned us that we are in his house and his house gets noisy. And then the house came down.

Everyone went nuts as Bravo Company marched in, all four platoons. Our daughter was 4th Platoon. It was amazing. Each platoon then marched separately onto the stage with their Drill Sargent singing their cadence. The soldiers then shouted their rank, last name and home state and marched off the stage. Here's part of it here but there is a 100 Mb limit on these clips and only this was small enough to fit.

There were special awards for outstanding effort. Our daughter got one for having a perfect physical fitness rating, 300 out of 300. And then it was over.

We got together at Shea Gym afterwards and met her three drill sergeants along with some of her classmates. There are not many pics here because, well, her MOS is mil intel, I don't know where her friends are being transferred for AIT and it just ain't a good idea to throw a clear pic of her face or her friends' around the Internet.

Then we took off to the PX for some shopping. A few hundred dollars later we finally got off base and asked her where she wanted to eat. We were almost back to the hotel and she yelled "Cracker Barrel!" It was the first non-fast food restaurant we drove by. She was just so desperate for non-Army food. She scarfed down her pulled pork sandwich with fries and sweet potato casserole like she just got out of jail.

We then returned to our hotel and just sat around talking for hours while she drank tea (no caffeinated beverages at all were allowed during basic training) and TheraFlu for her cold. We ate dinner at the same grill as the night before and had to have her back on base by 2045.

We drove back on base and walked her to her barracks ("You got five minutes Bravo!" yelled a female sgt. with a thick Jamaican accent). We left when the sergeants called everyone into formation (count heads to see if any one went AWOL).
This pic is as we were walking away. There are almost 200 soldiers in Bravo Company and they are all going to Advanced Individual Training (AIT) - many for medical training and transportation. Only three are mil intel and will fly to Monterey for DLI.

We slept in the next morning; our daughter called us at 0900 and said they were all outside the barracks sitting on their gear and waiting for orders. No one had a clue.

We left the hotel around 1100. At 1130 we stopped in Rolla, MO, for brunch. While eating our meal (thanks but no grits for me), our daughter called and said she was on the bus and had just left the base. The driver had just put "Ironman" on the bus's dvd system. She was on her way to St. Louis airport and her flight wouldn't leave until about 1600. Great! We could see her again in St. Louis for a little while.

We ditched the car at Enterprise (I will never rent another Corolla! It only had 2,800 miles on it when we rented it and the interior was falling apart already. It was an uncomfortable, annoying little car!) and grabbed the shuttle to the airport. We walked into the ticket area and it was a sea of green. Soldiers were lined up everywhere getting their boarding passes.

Our daughter found us and then we found a Starbucks. She was wearing her brand new ACU's. It was only an hour but you just hate to let the time go. But she is a soldier now and she belongs to Uncle Sam. We finally said our goodbyes for the last time and she walked away. She's so dawg goned little but she has the determination of a six footer.

The flight to Newark was late but uneventful. The Continental people in St. Louis were mocking Newark Airport as we waited for the plane to arrive. I just hate these little jets. The ERJ145 has only three aisles; one seat along the left side of the plane and two seats along the right side. You just can't get comfortable in it. Thank God I didn't have to use the rest room.

What can I say about Newark Airport? It is huge and under construction. When we landed I could see that there were lots of aircraft lined up ass-to-nose along the runways.

Continental contracts with a smaller provider for service to Syracuse and you fly these little turboprops that sound like insane angry eggbeaters. The actual flight only lasted about forty-five minutes and we were taxing around for longer than that trying to take off. The idiot captain binged us and said that we would be waiting four or five minutes to take off. Forty minutes later we were still on the ground.

We sat in the very ass end of the plane, a Bombardier Q-200 that seats only 39 people; any more passengers and you have to install meat hooks. The prop wash was shaking us like a terrier with a chew toy. Applause broke out in the cabin when the blasted thing finally took off. They should issue 'ludes as standard fare whenever you board these little stinking planes.

We got into Syracuse and drove home. Today it is raining and we're just putting things away and making calls.

Our daughter called about 1500. She is in the plane at LAX - she was not allowed on the flight from LAX to Monterey last night because she had a bad nose bleed. She called the base and offered to rent a car and drive the six hours to DLI, but they told her to catch another flight in the morning. One of her buddies from basic who is also assigned to DLI is still with her and refused to travel onto DLI without her. They drill it into your head not to abandon your buddy and this gal did just that. The guy that was with them left but I don't think he knew she was not able to fly.

The two of them spent the night at the LAX USO on a couch.

That darn head cold of hers.... she was blowing her nose so much that the discharge has been flecked with blood for several days in a row. She finally popped something. The USO people took good care of them; she slept about ten hours but she still sounds terrible..

She did the correct thing and called the base to notify them right away of her transportation issues. She is still worried that she may be in trouble. I told her that she is just following orders. They told her to grab another flight in the morning, nothing was said about waiting for the MP's to arrest her. I truly hope the soldier who stayed with her is not in hot water.

She really has to get herself to sick bay first thing.

33 Days And A Wake Up

Just got off the phone with our daughter at Ft. Leonard Wood.

GOOD NEWS! GREAT NEWS!

Courtney's brother is alive. He has been wounded and is in Germany right now. Three vehicles had gotten separated from a convoy and were attacked; he was wounded but I have no information as to the nature of his injuries but it involves one or both of his arms. His last name is Burd, and I believe that he is from Oswego County just north of us.

We are flying down to Ft. Leonard Wood for our daughter's graduation from boot camp. We can't wait to see her. In her own words, just "33 days and a wake up" and we'll be with her for a few hours anyway.

Courtney's Brother Is MIA

When my daughter enlisted in the Army last month there was an 18 yr old girl who also enlisted and stood right next to her when the oath was administered. Her name is Courtney and she is a stand up gal. She and my daughter are in Fort Leonard Wood together in the same training platoon and until recently were "battle buddies." They did everything together and helped their platoon become one of the best so far in the battalion. They were split up last week because two other girls are having a difficult time and they are using Courtney and my daughter as their battle buddies in an effort to get these two girls through basic.

When she called Sunday she was a little upset about this change. Her new "buddy" is a bit of a whiner and a slacker, well, maybe more than a bit; a lot more - and she misses Courtney. I counseled her that God is using her to help assist someone who needs help. God is "stretching" her in a difficult situation so that she can be of more use in His service later on. That's how we grow.

We just got a letter today from Ft. Leonard Wood. Courtney's brother is in the Air Force and is stationed in Iraq. This is not good:

"his vehicle somehow separated from the convoy he was with and is missing. Three other vehicles that were also missing from the same convoy were blown up and I think no survivors. She's a little trooper here but she's worried sick. I just found out Sunday after we made our phone calls and I told her we'd be praying for her."

I do not know the young man's name nor am I certain how accurate this information is. But please pray for this soldier's safe return and for any other GI's with him.

Anyone reading this, please consider passing this on.

Thanks much. Will keep you appraised as I hear more.

No Introduction Is Necessary

Just watch this.



I am not a fan of John McCain. But this young man's service and sacrifice speaks to what I believe. My wife cried when I showed this to her.

Hearts And Minds

I guess we are winning hearts and minds. But in Iraq, not in the liberal Democratic enclaves of our own country.

WASHINGTON - President Bush hailed as a major achievement Monday the turnover of control Iraq's Anbar province to Iraqi forces, saying the once-violent region had been "transformed and reclaimed by the Iraqi people." "Iraqi forces will now take the lead in security operations in Anbar, with American troops moving into an overwatch role," Bush said in a statement released by the White House.

"Not long ago, Anbar was one of the most dangerous provinces in Iraq" and al-Qaida leaders "intended to turn Anbar province into a safe haven from which to plan and launch further attacks against Iraqis and others in the region, as well as here at home."

Bush said that while al-Qaida and Iranian-backed militants remain a threat in the region, scene of some of the bloodiest battles since the 2003 invasion, the U.S. and multinational forces "continue to stand with the Iraqis as they work to defeat these enemies and build a democracy in the heart of the Middle East. The success of Iraq will make the American people more secure and help yield the peace we all desire."

Bush said that Anbar has now been "transformed and reclaimed by the Iraqi people. This achievement is a credit to the courage of our troops, the Iraqi security forces, and the brave tribes and other civilians from Anbar who worked alongside them."