Something... and Half of Something

July 10, 2008

Spreading the Cheer

This showed up in my email (thanks Sarge!)... and it put a big old smile on my face:

I think about the men and women of the United States Military, and what they face every single day to protect my freedom, and everything I am facing pales in comparison.

If you liked it as much as I did, then go tell them!

Posted by LindaSoG at 09:24 PM | Comments (1)

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July 04, 2008

Defining Patriotism

Happy Birthday America!! USA! USA!! USA!!!

Posted by LindaSoG at 08:17 AM | Comments (2)

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Happy Fourth of July

Oh, Say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thro' 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!

On the shore, dimly seen thro' the mists of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream.
'Tis the star-spangled banner; oh, long may it wave
O'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Oh, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation;
Blest with victory and peace, may the heaven-rescued land
Praise the power that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust!"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave,
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Francis Scott Key

Posted by LindaSoG at 07:59 AM | Comments (0)

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June 19, 2008

I loved him then

and I love him now!

Parody, yes, but a good one and I'm happy to have a reason to post it.

Okay, back to the article. I was somewhat struck by this:

Last January McCain said that the president was “ very badly served by both the vice president and, most of all, the secretary of defense.”

“John said some nasty things about me the other day, and then next time he saw me, ran over to me and apologized,” Cheney said in an ABC News interview in February. “Maybe he’ll apologize to Rumsfeld.”

Aw. Ran over and apologized, did he? Nothing says hypocrite and panderer quite like an apology made in private for an attack made in public. Maybe McCain will apologize to Rumsfield, or... maybe he already has. In private.

Some of McCain’s colleagues in the Senate said they believe Rumsfeld will eventually support the GOP candidate. “He will be for him in due time,” Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) said. ... Rumsfeld’s vote will be for McCain, Thune surmised, because “he cares about the country’s national security.”

Yeah sure, McCain really really cares about the country's national security, you can tell by his plan to close GITMO because after all, closing GITMO and bringing terrorists here into the United States prison system will do so much for the country's national security. Sure, why not give these hardened and experienced terrorists a captive audience made up of angry, violent, hate-filled American citizens and the opportunity to recruit and train and initiate them into Jihad. It will only make us safer, right?

If Obama was advocating this plan you'd say he was pro-terrorist, and I would agree with you. So...

Uh oh. There appears to be quite a few similarities between the two.

And... while we are on the subject, even though we have those hardened and experienced terrorists in custody, if John McCain is in charge, you can be sure that we'll never know who their terrorist friends are, and where those terrorist friends are, and we'll never know what those terrorists are planning, because we won't interrogate the terrorists we catch with any amount of aggression. McCain's policy of "pretty please" won't make us safer and sooner or later, those terrorists are going to get lucky again, and kill a bunch of innocent Americans.

UPDATE:

Republican John McCain vowed today that if he's president, Osama bin Laden will be either killed in combat or executed.

That little gem is posted on John's website. Sure, Johnny boy knows how to get him, all ya gotta do is just say "pretty please" to the next terrorist we catch and he'll tell us where to find bin Laden! Silly old George Bush just wasn't asking nice.

Gah! I despise that man more every day.

Posted by LindaSoG at 07:30 AM | Comments (4)

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June 12, 2008

Bastards!

But then again, what else is there to expect from the french?

The beech trees of Saint Pierre de Varengeville-Duclair forest bore a poignant testimony to the D-Day landings for more than six decades. Thousands of American soldiers stationed there after the liberation of Normandy spent their spare hours with a knife or bayonet creating a lasting reminder of their presence.

Although the trees grew and the graffiti swelled and twisted, this most peculiar memory of one of the 20th century’s defining moments remained visible - until now. Amid bureaucratic indifference and a dispute between officials and the forest owner, most of the trees have been felled, chopped up and turned into paper.

Claude Quétel, a French historian and Second World War specialist, was horrified when he discovered what he called a catastrophe and a shameless act. “It is a typically French failing to wipe out the traces of the past,” he told The Times.

The trees surrounded land in the heart of Saint Pierre de Varengeville-Duclair forest, near Rouen in Normandy, which was once home to a US army camp named after the Twenty Grand brand of cigarettes. It was one of nine cigarette camps - along with Pall Mall, Old Gold, Philip Morris, Chesterfield, Lucky Strike, Home Run, Wings and Herbert Tareyton - used by troops needing treatment or waiting to be sent elsewhere. They were places of calm between the D-Day landings and the Ardennes, the Siegfried Line or the Pacific.

Camp Twenty Grand, set up in September 1944 and closed in February 1946, had tents for 20,000 US soldiers as well as a few hundred German prisoners. Some of the Americans stayed weeks, others months, bringing chocolate, fruit and parties to a French population emerging from the rigour of Nazi occupation.

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Gah! I spit on the french, and all their generations, yesterday, today, and into the future.

Posted by LindaSoG at 07:08 PM | Comments (3)

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May 26, 2008

Reveille

Posted by LindaSoG at 12:32 PM | Comments (7)

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May 25, 2008

In Memory

of the Fallen:

Please don't wish me, or anyone else, a "happy" Memorial Day. Memorial Day is a day for somber remembrance of the brave men and women who were killed in action defending this great Nation and the freedom of every man, woman and child throughout the world.

If you're "celebrating" with a backyard barbeque, take a moment and lift a glass, have a moment of silence, in their honor, remember the sacrifice made for you, and pray for the comfort of their loved ones left behind.

Loved ones like Kristen Nelson.

Posted by LindaSoG at 09:41 AM | Comments (4)

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May 23, 2008

Quote of the Day

“The taint of unlawful command influence started from the inception of the investigation, when high-ranking Pentagon officials decided to make LtCol Chessani a political scapegoat to appease a liberal anti-war press and politicians. This ill-conceived prosecution has resulted in the removal of one of America’s most effective combat commanders in Iraq by the Marine Corps’ own standards. Although nothing can undo the harm caused to our Nation and to LtCol Chessani and his family, this ruling gives us hope that the military justice system will rise above the politics that fomented this prosecution and allow LtCol Chessani, who devoted more than 20 years to the Marine Corps and to the defense of our Nation, to get on with his life.”

Yep. The Military Judge found evidence of unlawful command influence in the Haditha prosection. Ya hear that John Murtha?

It's not over, but it will be soon. 30 months after Time Magazine published terrorist propaganda as news, the cases against three of the four Marines charged in the Haditha incident have already been dismissed, LtCol Chessani will be next. In a perfect world, we would then see those who invented this story indicted, including Time Magazine and yes, including John Murtha. I suppose its too much to hope for.

Posted by LindaSoG at 06:24 AM | Comments (3)

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May 12, 2008

Great Words from a Great Man

I give you an excerpt from the speech given to the cadets of the U.S. Military Academy by General of the Army Douglas MacArthur upon his acceptance of the Sylvanus Thayer Award 46 years ago today, on 12 May 1962:

Full Text can be found on the Tribute to the General I did many many years ago, back when this silly weblog was a silly website.

Posted by LindaSoG at 12:42 PM | Comments (4)

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April 22, 2008

Reason #948387532

Why I love the Marines:

It was filmed in Fallujah, Iraq and it kinda makes ya feel good all over don't it?

I spotted that at Theodore's World and shamelessly stole it to post here. Thanks Wild Thing, that was wonderful.

Posted by LindaSoG at 09:23 PM | Comments (1)

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April 04, 2008

Reason # 84762654

why I love the Marines:

heh.

(I found it at Denny's)

Posted by LindaSoG at 05:56 AM | Comments (4)

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March 30, 2008

Sgt Keith Matthew "Matt" Maupin

On April 9, 2004, terrorists kidnapped then PFC Keith "Matt" Maupin, assigned to the Army Reserve 724th Transportation Company, when his convoy of fuel trucks was ambushed while enroute from Camp Anaconda to Baghdad International Airport. He had been in Iraq for six weeks.

A week later, Al Jazeera aired a video that included Maupin giving his name, rank and serial number, indicating that he was being held by a group known as the "Sharp Sword Against the Enemies of God and His Prophet". The group indicated that they would be willing to trade Maupin for prisoners being held by the U.S.

Two months later, another video showed a man in desert camouflage, sitting in front of a hole in the ground. The man, identified as Maupin, was shown only from the back...and then, apparently, was shot in the head. A statement released with the video claimed that Maupin had been killed because the U.S. refused to negotiate the release of Iraqi prisoners.

The figure sitting in the dirt was only shown from behind, so there was no proof that it was Maupin. Despite thousands of tips, an Arabic-language commercial aired several hundred times in Iraq, and a $200,000 reward for the return or recovery of Maupin, the trail grew cold. Matt was not considered “missing in action” and he was not considered a “prisoner of war” either. He was just… gone. We hoped... and we prayed.... and we waited...

And now, almost four years later, Matt Maupin is coming home:

His resting place shall be in the Garden of Eden.
Therefore, the Master of mercy will care for him
under the protection of His wings for all time
And bind his soul in the bond of everlasting life.
God is his inheritance and he will rest in peace
and let us say Amen.

Maupins Confirm D-N-A is from Body of Son, Missing Soldier Matt Maupin

(UNION TOWNSHIP, OH) -- Keith Maupin confirmed this afternoon that the remains of his son, Matt Maupin, have been identified by the army in Iraq.

In a statement Keith said "We are proud of the continued efforts of the military and the army to return Matt to us. We must now work on efforts to return Matt.'

"Please keep the military and our family in your prayers."

Carolyn Maupin, Matt's mother said, "Thanks to everyone for their prayers and continued strength of the family."

"It hurts after four years of hope and this is what happens it is like a let down for me and I'm trying to get thru that right now."

"Pray. This is going to be very difficult and stay by our side in support."

Keith says that the family was informed this afternoon about 1p-m by a three star general. The body was identified by the D-N-A remains.

Please, take a moment today, visit Matt's parents' website, sign the guestbook, and let his family know that you care.

Posted by LindaSoG at 08:05 PM | Comments (3)

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February 22, 2008

We are doomed

if this man ever becomes Commander in Chief:

Ohfercryingoutloud.

Posted by LindaSoG at 02:13 PM | Comments (6)

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February 21, 2008

USA! USA!! USA!!!

Go Navy!

Posted by LindaSoG at 12:08 AM | Comments (2)

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January 24, 2008

Presidential Decision Directive #25

What happens when the President of the United States decides to ignore the Constitution, ignore Congress, ignore statutory law, and send America's sons and daughters into a military setting under the authority and the command of a foreign entity?

Ask SPC Michael G. New:

On August 21, 1995, my seniors in the U.S. Army chain of command informed me that my unit and I would soon be ordered to significantly alter our uniform by sewing a United Nations patch on my right shoulder and wearing the blue beret and/or helmet of the U.N. These are important insignia. If they were unimportant, then I would not have been threatened with courts-martial, imprisonment, or less than dishonorable discharge when I expressed my reservations about wearing them. I interpret the wearing of a uniform, or the accoutrements of a uniform, as a sign of allegiance and faithfulness to the authority or power so signified, or which issues that uniform. I am an American citizen who was recruited for and voluntarily joined the U.S. Army to serve as an American soldier. I am not a citizen of the United Nations. I am not a United Nations Fighting Person. I have never taken an oath to the United Nations, but I have taken the required oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States.

I am not trying to avoid a difficult or dangerous assignment or to get out of the Army. I served in Kuwait last year and have offered to serve anywhere in the world, in my American uniform, in my capacity as a U.S. Army medic under American command and U.S. Constitutional protections. I have worked diligently to be a good soldier. I have previously been offered a "Green to Gold" program to an Army Commission, and I am still seriously considering that offer. In order to avoid controversy, or to avoid placing the Army in a bad light, I have requested a transfer to a unit that is not required to wear the U.N. uniform. I was told that such is not possible, and I was even reluctantly willing to accept an honorable discharge, and I was willing to sadly and reluctantly withdraw from the U.S. Army quietly. However, I will not wear a U.N. uniform or serve under U.N. command, and I will strongly contest any discharge that is less than honorable.

I simply cannot understand the legal basis of the Army order to change my uniform against my oath of enlistment, against my conscience and against my will. Despite my requests for information up my chain of command, my questions about the lawfulness of such an order or about how my allegiance can be transferred without my approval have gone unanswered.

My chain of command has directed me to study the history and objectives of the U.N. My knowledge of, and my research into the United Nations, (which continues even as I prepare this statement), indicates to me that the U.N. Charter is based upon manmade principles which are incompatible with the Constitution of the United States, and the U.N.'s authority and principles are diametrically opposed to the founding documents of my country. The more I study the U.N. history and American history, the more incompatible they appear to me.

My studies indicate to me that there are those who would see my country assimilated or brought under the authority of the United Nations, which I interpret to mean a corresponding loss of sovereignty, which is a departure from our Founding Principles and a loss of independence for all Americans. Boutros-Ghali, for example, has written, "The time of absolute and exclusive sovereignty has passed." (1992, An Agenda for Peace) I should expect EVERY American soldier to be concerned about serving under such a Secretary General.

I believe that the Constitution is the fundamental law of America, and if there is any ambiguity or conflict with treaty or international agreement or organization that the U.S. Constitution would prevail. My oath is to the Constitution. I cannot find any reference to the United Nations in that oath. That oath includes a statement that is more than a passing reference to God Almighty, it is a prayer, "...so help me God." It is no secret that our nation is founded upon Biblical principles. {~" ) Our Founders reflected this fact in their speeches, correspondence and documents from the Mayflower Compact to the Declaration of Independence, and other more recent documents, all of which recognize certain rights such as life, liberty and property as being bestowed from Above, and as, therefore, "unalienable." I believe I will lose something precious and more valuable than the U.N. can possibly grant me, by surrendering my status as an American fighting man.

Without a response from the Army about the legality of any orders to become a U.N. soldier, I do not intend to surrender my status as an American soldier to wear the uniform of a foreign power. If you wish to convene a courts-martial and send me to jail for standing upon my oath as an American soldier and for defending my wearing the American Army uniform, and its historic significance, then I cannot prevent that action, and I will accept it as a price I am willing to pay, rather than submit to an order to obey or render allegiance to any foreign power, including the United Nations.

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"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God."

Powerful words, clear and consise, it is the oath Michael New took to defend the constitution of the United States. An oath so many brave and honorable men and women have taken with pride, determination, courage and honor.

It was not, and is not, an oath to server under the command of the United Nations or any other foreign entity.

Michael was told the order to wear the UN uniform was lawful because,"The President says so, therefore it is." But nobody provided a legitimate, legal or rational basis for the order. Eventually, a battalion briefing about the deployment offered the justification that, "We wear the U.N. uniform because it looks fabulous."

SPC Michael G. New refused. He refused to discard the uniform of the United States Army and to don the uniform of a foreign entity.

Today is the anniversary of his court-martial. The panel of seven, including three officers, returned a "guilty" verdict on charge of disobedience. They denied the Army's request for a prison term and Dishonorable Discharge, giving Michael a "Bad Conduct" Discharge instead.

"Right is right, and wrong is wrong. They can argue until the end of time, but I will never serve the United Nations." - Michael G. New

A decade of fighting, Michael's appeals have all been denied, and today, the conviction stands. In December of 2005, Judge Paul Friedman upheld the military's conviction, ruling that the U.S. military can force its personnel to wear the blue beret of the United Nations and serve under the world body's command.

That decision stands today.

But... its not over. President Clinton's Decision Directive #25 to place American troops under a foreign command is now 13 years old and eligble for declassification. In August of 2007, Michael New requested just that. Why? Well, it could mean a reversal.

Does it matter? Hell yes, it matters, especially since America could very well be facing another Clinton Presidency. What happened to Michael New could very well happen again, to our troops in uniform today.

American Troops should not be forced to serve under a foreign power. I pray Michael is successful.

Want to help? There's more here.

Posted by LindaSoG at 11:30 AM | Comments (3)

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January 19, 2008

Where do we get such men?

A wounded Navy Seal puts this on his hospital door.

I found it at SondraK

Posted by LindaSoG at 08:56 PM | Comments (2)

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January 08, 2008

In Memory of the King

Elvis Presley
January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977

G.I. Blues

Happy Birthday Elvis. You still have the power to melt my heart.

Posted by LindaSoG at 06:16 AM | Comments (2)

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January 05, 2008

In Memory of Andrew Olmsted

Posted by LindaSoG at 06:05 PM | Comments (1)

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January 02, 2008

Reason #8674367395

Why We Win:

but wait... there's more:

I love a bit of war pr0n with my coffee. Ha! The numb nuts never saw it coming... fire raining down from the heavens, justice, swift and sure. Our troops are kicking ass and taking no prisoners, and that my friends, is just how I like it.

Posted by LindaSoG at 07:09 AM | Comments (4)

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December 12, 2007

There are many ways to skin a cat!

Much ado is being made of the Military's policy of returning mail that is addressed to "Any Soldier." Its a shame, but such are the times we live in. I support that decision, and not just because some jihadi may decide to send a little anthrax for Christmas.

There are moonbats out there who think one way to fight the war is to demoralize our troops, and I don't want anyone getting a "dear baby killer" letter from the wackos. An outrage, yes, but it has happened, just google Joshua Sparling and you'll see how the left supports the troops.

The end result is that anything addressed to "Any Soldier" has to be vetted for the safety and well being of our troops. Its just one more thing we have to deal with.

But do not doubt, we are dealing with it.

Good people will always find a way accomplish a goal.

So. Here's a tip I received from Wollfe:

"With the support of the Department of Defense, Walter Reed Army Medical Center and with help from Pitney Bowes Government Solutions, the American Red Cross will collect, review and disseminate holiday greeting cards to wounded military personnel. For security reasons, the Red Cross will only be able to accept holiday cards, not packages. Red Cross volunteers will receive and bundle the cards to be shipped by Pitney Bowes Government Solutions. Then, Red Cross volunteers at military medical facilities will distribute the cards to patients and their families in time for the holidays."

Address your Cards or Letters to:

We Support You During Your Recovery!
c/o American Red Cross
PO Box 419
Savage, MD 20763-0419

If you hurry, you might be in time for the Holidays.

But that's not all.

Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, located in Germany, is usually the first actual military hospital wounded soldiers are taken to after they've been evacuated from the Middle East. Sometimes, they are further evacuated stateside after a few weeks, and sometimes they return to duty.

Thanks to Pastoral Services, you can send a card or a letter to a wounded soldier at Landstuhl, and they will make sure your letter or card gets to a soldier. Its probably too late for Holiday greetings but better late than never!

US Army Hospital
attn: MCEUL/Pastoral Services
CMR 402
APO AE 09180

These services are generally overwhelmed during the holidays, please remember, our troops need your support 365 days a year. These addresses are always good. Why not make it a monthly thing, or even better, a weekly thing. Its a good habit to get into.

Posted by LindaSoG at 07:15 AM | Comments (1)

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November 27, 2007

Of course the Democrats support veterans

just not American Veterans!

A recent Veterans' Affairs Committee meeting took an unusual twist, ...

First, the Veterans' Committee took away benefits from some very deserving American veterans. Second, the committee gave benefits to veterans of another country who don't live in the United States, and never have lived in this country or been American citizens.

... the Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2007 (H.R. 760)... will provide benefits to Filipino World War II veterans.

These veterans were members of the Philippines military. They fought in the Pacific Theater, presumably on behalf of their native country.

They are citizens of the Philippines and not U.S. citizens. While these Filipino troops may have fought bravely, side-by-side, with American soldiers, they should be looking to the Philippines for veterans' benefits.

If signed into law, it would provide full veterans' status to World War II era Filipino soldiers and even their survivors.

This would include pay for service related disabilities, survivor pay for service-connected deaths, as well as pensions and death benefits.

Those who are living in the Philippines, and are not U.S. citizens, would receive $6,000 to $8,400. Low-income widows would receive $3,600.

Oh... but there's more. Of course, there's more.

Because of House PAYGO rules, any new entitlement spending (such as the Filipino Veterans Equity Act) must be funded by either a corresponding cut in existing spending or matching revenue gains.

In this case, the Democrats on the Veterans Committee voted to save nearly $1 billion by eliminating a $2,200 special monthly payment to veterans who are less than 100 percent disabled, but 60 percent or greater disabled.

We can stop this thing. If you care about our Veterans, the time to raise your voice is now, while this atrocity is still in Committee. Click here, call, email, fax the Committee members.

You can also thank VA Committee Chairman Bob Filner, D-California for sponsoring this outrage. Phone: (202) 225-8045; Fax: (202) 225-9073.

Spread the word!

Posted by LindaSoG at 12:59 PM | Comments (4)

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November 11, 2007

Thank You!

"A man must know his destiny… if he does not recognize it, then he is lost. By this I mean, once, twice, or at the very most, three times, fate will reach out and tap a man on the shoulder… if he has the imagination, he will turn around and fate will point out to him what fork in the road he should take, if he has the guts, he will take it." - General George S. Patton, Jr.

Veterans' Day will come and go
Quicker than the blink of an eye
But memories of heroes present and past
Will never, ever die.
The youth of today, do you understand?
The price brave men did pay
To preserve the freedom we enjoy
Each and every day.

They were called to duty, and so they went
Not knowing what was to be
Many came home, some never did
They sacrificed so we could be free.

How lonely some must have felt
How scared some had to be
They paid the bill with their own blood
What a great cost to be free.

The heroes of our country
Are the ones who paved the way
For freedom and the many rights
That we enjoy today.

Next time, young folks, you pass someone
Who may be old and gray
Remember — thanks to him or her
You have your freedom today.

Support our President, support our troops
Support our country, too
As they go fighting for what is right
For freedom the price is due.

by Holly Rulli

November 11 is also General Patton's Birthday, but we never seem to remember that. Below is the famous "Patton Prayer" sent to the men of the Third Army December 8, 1944:

"Almighty and most merciful Father, we humbly beseech Thee, of Thy great goodness, to restrain these immoderate rains with which we have had to contend. Grant us fair weather for Battle. Graciously hearken to us as soldiers who call Thee that, armed with Thy power, we may advance from victory to victory, and crush the oppression and wickedness of our enemies, and establish Thy justice among men and nations. Amen."

Amen.

Today is the last day of the Valour-IT Fundraise and yes, the Marines Team is still doing well...

We're beating the AirForce and the Navy:

But the Army is beating the Marines...

Please, show our troops you care!

Posted by LindaSoG at 07:28 AM | Comments (5)

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November 10, 2007

Happy Birthday!

'Twas winter time in Quantico in nineteen-twenty-two,
The slum was pretty rough that night, and all the men felt blue;
The hail and sleet, with ghostly feet beat on the bunkhouse dome,
Some men doped out their time to do, while others thought of home.

Then from the starless night, there slipped in through the bunkhouse door,
An old top sergeant that no man had ever seen before;
The hoar frost glistened in his hair, his eyes like star shells shone,
A gnarled mustache hid half his face, and he was skin and bone.

He sat down near the glowing stove and warmed his fleshless hands,
The chill of death was in his breath, like thunder his commands;
His voice was hollow, like the tone of one who’d long been dead,
And when he spoke, the silence broke, and this is what he said:

“Pipe down, all you devil-whelps, and snap out of your dreams,
And a tale I’ll tell of heaven and hell, and the Devil-Dog Marines;
Just Captain Jimmy Bones, M.C., their skipper wrote his name,
He was a fiend for fighting, he had no care for fame.”

“Have never seen so fierce a man on land, nor sky , nor sea,
He had a scar for every war, and fought in ninety-three;
When he was riled, he had an eye that drilled a hole through men,
He spoke but once, and no man asked him how, nor why, nor when.”

“Now Jimmy was the headpiece of a hundred brave Gyrenes,
He used to have a whole lot more who died from eating beans;
But them what ate the chow and lived, they sure were hard-boiled guys,
They flicked the bullets off their coats just like so many flies.”

The old top sergeant’s voice grew low, and at its ghostly gloom,
Men shivered, and the vermin crawled upon the bunkhouse broom;
He stuffed a live coal in his pipe, and deeply did inhale,
He blew the smoke clean through the roof, and then resumed his tale.

“They say the devil made him mean when he was in the skies,
And filled them all so full of hell it shone out through their eyes;
Then old St. Peter found the bunch, and gave them souls of white,
But hell still boiled up in them, and they couldn’t else but fight.”

“So Peter had to can old Nick, and when to earth he fell,
He got himself a steady job recruiting souls for hell;
Well, Peter stamped Marines ‘OK,’ and marked them all first class,
‘Cause all that ever scared ‘em was to see a looking-glass.”

“Now some they come from Texas sand, so they was full of grit,
And some was from Montana plains where they’d been roughing it;
Some more they come from old New York, and wore a Bowery frown,
Then some which was the toughest came from good old Frisco town.”

"Old Jimmy Bones shoved off for France in nineteen-seventeen,
And shipped across the toughest crew the world had ever seen;
Each man had ‘First to Fight,’ tattooed across his chest, in black,
And right betwixt his shoulder blades, ‘Watch out, we’re coming back!’”

“Them hundred Devil Dogs sure was a bold and daring crew,
They bit the soles right off their shoes whenever they’d want a chew;
There wasn’t one among that bunch of those U.S. Marines
Who couldn’t spit three fathoms deep, and sink three submarines.”

“And when it came to shooting guns, why, say, them men were there,
They’d shave a man a mile away, and never miss a hair;
They’d trim the eyebrows off a lark, a- soarin’ in the sky,
Or shoot the points off shooting stars, as long as they had an eye.”

“They cruised on all the seven seas and rationed on hard tack,
They fought their way around the world and half to hell and back;
They fought in every war there was, clean up to Vera Cruz,
The only things they hadn’t fought was huns, and too much booze.”

“Now Jimmie Bones reached France OK with that all-furious crew,
And everyone turned round to say, ‘No savvy parley-vous;’
The French girls grabbed them by their hands, and washed their necks with tears,
The French men slapped them on their backs, and yelled them deaf with cheers.”

"Then Jimmy made a speech, and said, ‘I hear you got a war,
Around here somewheres hereabout, and that’s what we’re here for;
But all I got to say is this. Enjoy it while you can,
I’m going to clean up Germany If I lose every man."

“The Germans learned that Jimmie Bones had crossed the sea to fight,
And when they got that awful news, their feet turned cold with fright;
And when they lamped that roughneck crew from off an aeroplane,
It nearly knocked ‘em for a goal, and some went plumb insane.”

“Said they, ‘What is this thing, Marines? If they had said before,
They had such Devil Dogs as these, there wouldn’t be no war;’
So that is how they got their name of ‘Devil Dog’ Marines,
And ever since, they’ve chased the Dutch dachshund clean off the scenes.”

The old top sergeant rolled his eyes, as if to recollect,
And where he let his fierce glance fall, it scorched six feet of deck;
Said he, “No man has ever lived that crossed old Jimmy Bones,
He had the power that lifted men, Or dragged kings down from thrones.”

"A general of the allies looked out through his periscope,
And seen ten million German huns a-coming on the lope;
He bit his short mustache and said, ‘We’re in an awful stew,
We’ve only got a million men. It looks like they’ll break through.’”

“Then, Jimmy Bones piped up and said, ‘You didn’t count Marines,
I’ve got some hell-dogs that’ll chew the spikes right off their beans;
‘Cause numbers don’t mean nothing to my well-behaving crew,
Why, they ain’t been to school enough to count the men they slew.’”

“The general said, ‘You win, my man. Go take your wild Marines,
And form a scouting party just to double up the scenes;’
Then Jimmy Bones saluted stiff, and to the general said,
‘We’ll break through to Berlin, sir, If we don’t, we’ll come back dead.’”

“With that, he yelled, ‘Outside, Marines, and snap out of your hop,
We’re going out to gather up that German lemon crop;
And if I see one of you men so much as leave a rind,
You’ll rate the brig ‘till kingdom come, and sixty dollars fine.’”

“The hundred Devil Dogs fell out, and then they all fell in,
And each one closed a gap in ranks by shaving up his chin;
The chief cook turned up missing when the time for counting come,
But he was cooking shrapnel up to make the crew some slum.”

“Then Jimmy Bones, he gave a talk, to all his men, he said,
‘We’re shipping out on heavy seas with reefs and shoals ahead;
But all I got to say is this, remember you’re Marines,
Cause water settles everything, and that’s what our name means.”

"He marched ‘em up on company front, in quick and double-time,
He marched ‘em in a riot squad and in a skirmish line;
He ran ‘em in a platoon rush, and then by single squad;
And each advance ten thousand huns stretched out and hit the sod.”

"He mowed ‘em down with Browning guns, and with their Springfield gats,
And them they couldn’t get that way they stuck with bayonets;
And when it came to trenches they just shoved the banks all in,
And tons of huns were swallowed up, and never lived again.”

“The Germans shot a bunch of bombs of dead limburger cheese,
But all it did to Jimmy’s men was make them cough and sneeze;
Then Jimmy lit a strong cigar from off a passing shell,
Three million huns got one good whiff, and died of that vile smell.”

“The hundred Devil Dogs shoved on, their eyes flashed liquid fire,
Which melted guns and cannons up just like they were lead wire;
They kicked about a million huns into the River Marne,
And if they drowned, or sunk, or swam, they didn’t give a darn.”

“The Germans thought that judgment day had come to take its tolls,
They got the jula in their knees, and trembled in their souls;
And when they saw those Devil Dogs, and heard their awful yell,
They knew their judgment day had come, and they were picked for hell.”

“So, what was left threw up their mitts, and hollered ‘kamerad,’
But Jimmy’s men thought that was Dutch for talk profaning God;
So they stuck their bayonets right through them anyhow,
And buzzards came down from the sky and ate ‘em up for chow.”

“Now Kaiser bill and Hindenburg was in a game of craps,
He staked his royal crown against a box of ginger snaps;
Old Hindy won the crown and said, ‘This ain’t no good to me,
I’d sooner have a bite to eat than all of Germany’”

“Said Kaiser Bill, ‘I’ll tell you what. You lend ten marks to me,
I’ll pay you back in a month or two with French indemnity.’
Said Hindy, ‘Where’d you get that stuff. Do you see any green on me?
I bought myself some Liberty Bonds from Mrs. Liberty.’”

“Just then the crown prince busted in and said, ‘Oh papa dear;
I see some wild men coming who will wreck this joint, I fear;
I’ll shoot a long-range shot at them, and if they still persist,
Then I’ll take about a million men and slap them on the wrist.’”

“The Kaiser took a peek out from a half-raised window blind,
And seen a hundred Devil Dogs a-swimming across the Rhine;
The river was a-running blood, From all the men they slew,
And every time they’d duck their heads, they’d drink a quart or two.”

“The Kaiser’s hair stood up on end and turned from black to white,
And when he spied old Jimmy Bones, his blood ran cold with fright;
He grabbed the prince’s hand and said, ‘Don’t fool with that wild Yank,
He’ll fill you full of bullet holes where Papa used to spank.’”

“‘What ho the guard!’ Cried Kaiser Bill. ‘There ain't no guard no more,’
Said Hindenburg, ‘The guard was shot out there by the palace door;’
‘Where is my ally Gott?’ yelled Bill. 'Von Gott, he ain’t at home,’
Said Hindenburg, ‘The Gott you had was in your crazy dome.’”

“The Kaiser’s eyes stuck out a mile. ‘What shall I do?’ said he,
‘I’ll save myself and my six brave sons. To hell with Germany;’
Said Hindenburg, ‘It went to hell long time before this thing,
Ten million huns that you sent there are waiting for their king.’”

“The outside palace door crashed in. There was a mighty roar,
‘Thank gott,” said Hindenburg, ‘I’ll see that mush of yours no more;’
With that he grabbed his gat and blew the brains out of his head,
And Kaiser Bill knowed then and there he meant just what he said.”

“The Kaiser beat it for the door and flung it open wide,
And there he met Jimmy Bones a’coming just outside;
Behind him were his Devil Dogs with gleaming bayonets,
And Kaiser Bill knowed they had come to get a whole world’s bets.”

“Then Jimmy gave him just one look that turned his gizzard pale,
And made him wish that he had spent his life in some nice jail;
Said Jimmie Bones, ‘So you’re the cur that kicked up all this row,
You’ve got about an hour to live, so don’t give us no gow!’”

“The Kaiser’s nerve went over the hill. His brow dripped bloody sweat,
He got down on his knees and cried and got the carpet wet;
His teeth, they rattled, just like dice do in a game of craps,
And every word that Jimmy spoke was like a note of taps.”

“Then Jimmy Bones drawed out his gat, and then he tossed it by,
Said, ‘you ain’t fit enough to live, and not that fit to die;
You’ve served the devil all your life, but now you’ll work for me,’
And then he thought of things to do. Jim Bones can think of three.”

“‘You’ll stand a guard of twenty hours around the Arctic zones,
With fifteen minutes out to thaw the marrow in your bones;
And every hour throughout the night you’ll answer reveille,
And every twenty years or so, you’ll rate a liberty.’”

“‘And all you’ll have to drink is German blood you’ve shed,
And when you’re hungry, you will gnaw the bones of German dead;
You’ll do a jolt in eighty-four for ten or twenty years,
And under a hard-boiled non-com you’ll shed your dying tears.’”

“Then Jimmy stopped, and silence filled the gloomy castle hall,
The Kaiser rose and tried to speak, then fell against the wall;
Said he, ‘I thought the devil was a mean and ugly guy,
But you’ve got Satan cheated with one look out of your eye.’”

“Said Jimmy Bones, ‘Now that ain’t all I’m gonna leave you do,
Them things is just light duty, but there’s heavy duty too!’
The Kaiser throwed up both his mitts. ‘You win!’ That’s all he said,
He gave a yell that was heard in hell, and then fell over dead.”

The old top sergeant paused awhile to see if some would doubt,
He sneezed a sneeze, the stoves grew cold, the window panes fell out;
He rolled himself a cigarette from sweepings off the floor,
And lit it with his flaming eye, and then resumed once more.

“Now German spies sent work to France that Jimmy Bones was dead,
And all his hundred Devil Dogs was slaughtered too, they said;
The women weeped a lot of weeps. The men felt pretty bad,
And all of them were mourning cause the shock it hit ‘em bad.”

“The cook was boiling coffee up from a piece of dried-out meat,
Said he, ‘If they is dead or not they’ll be back here to eat;
The world has never seen the time Marines have met defeat,
They would have gone to hell to cut off Kaiser Bill’s retreat.’”

“A sentry sighted Jimmy’s men a’coming over the hill,
And dragging on behind them what was left of Kaiser Bill;
And when they reached old Paris, they were met with yells and cheers,
And showers of gold enough to last ‘em all a thousand years.”

“They hung a million medals on old Jimmy and his crew,
And when they took ‘em off they had a barrel full or two;
And ever after that each lived just like a millionaire,
They never answered reveille, or heard a bugle blare.”

“And all they did was bunk fatigue from then, forever more,
And when they died, they went above and knocked on heaven’s door;
Old Peter came down to the porch and hollered, ‘Halt! Who’s there?’
“United States Marines,” said Jim. First here, and everywhere’”

"So Peter let the whole bunch in along with Captain Jim,
And each one grabbed himself a harp, and sung the Marine hymn;
And ever after that each stood his guard on heaven’s green,
And nary a German has got past the brave U.S. Marine.”

The old top sergeant heaved a sigh that raised the bunkhouse roof,
And those who sat too close to him were blown ten feet aloof;
He cut the sling from off a gun and took a three-foot chew,
And where he spat, the floor gave way, and hell came boiling through.

Then from the fiery pit there rose a corporal of the guard,
His face was sunk, his flesh was iron, his look was twice as hard;
Said he, “The detail’s still intact around the brimstone floods,
The devil’s peeling onions and the Kaiser’s peeling spuds.”

The old top kicker knit his brow, said he, “All right, that’s well!
But when you’ve finished with that job they’ll start to coal up hell;
And if them billion tons ain’t in before they shut an eye,
I’ll run ‘em up ‘fore Jimmy Bones, and let them tell him why.”

The corporal turned and leaped head on down through that fiery mass,
The floor closed up, the bunkhouse swayed with clouds of molten mass.
The top arose, the lights went out, Taps sounded, came the rain,
A chill swept through the room and he was never seen again.

A true Marine Corps classic, “Captain Jimmy Bones And His Devil-Dog Marines” originally appeared in an early forties edition of “Leatherneck Magazine."

Now... what better way to say Thank you...

Posted by LindaSoG at 11:24 AM | Comments (4)

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November 05, 2007

Project Valour-IT - Go Marines!

I see hundreds of them on the road and in parking lots every day. All different colors and designs. Some yellow, some red, white and blue, some a combination. They all say the same thing. There is a yellow one on the back of my truck right now.

Support the Troops.

A fine notion, and one that America has not truly embraced since WWII. There were plenty of troops to support in-between now and then. I attended Support the Troops rallies during Desert Storm, including one on Biscayne Boulevard in Downtown Miami. Now the only rallies we see there are the anti-war rallies run by socialist/communists who consider America to be the enemy.

But, there are all those magnets. All those people who claim to support the troops. Spend your $5.00, stick it on the back of your vehicle and go on your merry way, doing all the day to day things in your life made possible by those very same troops.

What if... what if you met one of those troops face to face. One of those troops who spent several nights sleeping in a hollow in the sand, like those pictures you saw last year in your email? One of those troops who took Baghdad from Saddam's Army in less time than it took Reno to massacre the Branch Davidians? One of those troops who went door to door in Fallujah, under fire by terrorists. One of those troops who fired back, protecting himself, his unit, and yes, protecting you in the process. One of those troops who were running a supply convoy and ran into an I.E.D. One of those troops who took part in one of these IPOs? What if that troop had been injured?

Would you show him your magnet?

Project Valour-IT, in memory of SFC William V. Ziegenfuss, provides voice-controlled software and laptop computers to wounded Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines recovering from hand and arm injuries or amputations at major military medical centers. Operating laptops by speaking into a microphone, our wounded heroes are able to send and receive messages from friends and loved ones, surf the 'Net, and communicate with buddies still in the field without having to press a key or move a mouse. The experience of CPT Charles "Chuck" Ziegenfuss, a partner in the project who suffered hand wounds while serving in Iraq, illustrates how important this voice-controlled software can be to a wounded servicemember's recovery.

Many of my readers will remember when I made my Let's Cheer Up Chuck post in July of 2005. My goal at that time was to cheer up Chuck as he recovered from wounds he received while defending our freedom in Iraq. Many of you sent cards and letters to Chuck during his stay at Walter Reed and I thank you for that.

But there are other brave troops like Chuck who need our help, and they deserve the very best that America has to offer. Will they get it? I hope so, and I am sure you hope so too. But, like the magnets on the back of all those cars, hope is not going to do much to support these who have done their very best to protect our Freedom, and this Country.

I urge you to do a little more then just hope. Please help. Put your money where your heart is. Send the price of a magnet if that's all you can afford. But send something.

MARINE CORPS UPDATE:

The Marines Team is doing well...

We're beating the AirForce and the Navy:

But the Army is beating the Marines...

So, today I hit up the office, and I'm passing some flyers around the building. Why not do the same?

Our Team Leader, Holly Aho, is auctioning off some hand-made jewelry and Christmas is coming.... there are more auctions here and the money gets donated!

and... Special thanks to the Marine Corps Team:

Soldiers Angel - Holly Aho; The American Princess; Fuzzilicious Thinking; Gazing at the Flag; Michelle Malkin; A Blog For All; ThreatsWatch.org; Soldiers' Angels Germany;America's North Shore Journal; Stix Blog; The Dan Lee Report;Bookworm Room; Semper Gratus!; Gunz Up; Bilskirnir - Thor's Hall; Quality Weenie; GruntDoc; She Who Waits; docweaselblog; Not Ready for My Burqua; North Star Liberty; Random Thoughts; Freedom Dogs; Cao's blog; Sister Toldjah; Flobbergobber; Meep's Livejournal; IMAO; Gazizza; A Lovely Infidel; The American Pundit; Weird,Strange, or Crazy Auctions; What...?; Java Zen:Thinking Out Loud; To Tame the Wild Beastie; A Jester Unemployed; EckerNet.Com; Fatekisminy; Anti-Strib; Hugh Hewitt; http://www.myspace.com/unclemo665; Shadowscope; Something and Half of Something; Ogre's Politics and Views; PC Free Zone; Anti-Strib; A Swift Kick & A Band-Aid; The Median Sib; Political inSecurity; W. Thomas Smith Jr.; Drunken Wisdom; Is this Life?; American and Proud; Thismink.com; From the Halls to the Shores.

A fine group of people and fine buncha bloggers. Visit them!

Posted by LindaSoG at 06:47 AM | Comments (3)

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November 04, 2007

Thank you Art Carney

Today, on your birthday, I would like to thank you for the laughs... and thank you for protecting my freedom!

For those of you who didn't know... Art Carney was drafted into the Army in 1943 and in 1944, he took part in the D-Day landing at Normandy. A piece of mortar shrapnel shattered his right leg, leaving him with a leg three-quarters of an inch shorter than the other and a lifelong limp. He was awarded the Purple Heart.

Art Carney was a funny guy, and a Hero!

Posted by LindaSoG at 01:38 PM | Comments (2)

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October 31, 2007

Valour-IT - The Few ~ The Loud ~ The Marines!

From October 29th until November 11th I'm raising my voice with the Marine Corps fundraising team, for Project Valour-IT.

What is Project Valour IT? Well, first you get the background... the story behind Valour-IT:

Project Valour-IT began when Captain Charles "Chuck" Ziegenfuss was wounded by an IED while serving as commander of a tank company in Iraq in June 2005.

During his deployment he kept a blog. Captivating writing, insightful stories of his experiences, and his self-deprecating humor won him many loyal readers. After he was wounded, his wife continued his blog, keeping his readers informed of his condition.

As he began to recover, CPT Ziegenfuss wanted to return to writing his blog, but serious hand injuries hampered his typing. When a loyal and generous reader gave him a copy of the Dragon Naturally Speaking Preferred software, other readers began to realize how important such software could be to CPT Ziegenfuss' fellow wounded soldiers and started cast about for a way to get it to them.

A fellow who writes under the pseudonym FbL contacted Captain Ziegenfuss and the two realized they shared a vision of creating libraries of laptops with voice-controlled software that could be brought to the bedsides of wounded soldiers whose injuries prevented them from operating a standard computer. FbL contacted Soldiers' Angels, who offered to help develop the project, and Project Valour-IT was born.

When I made this post in July of 2005, my goal was to cheer up Chuck as he recovered from wounds he received while defending our freedom in Iraq. Yes, its the same Chuck, and many of you sent cards and letters to him during his stay at Walter Reed. I thank you for that. But, our work is not done yet. Now I'm asking you to help Valour-IT.

Project Valour-IT accepts donations of any amount to supply the "libraries" of laptops at major medical centers and gifts to individuals, but has also added the option of an individual or organization directly sponsoring a wounded soldier by completely funding the cost of a laptop and continuing to provide him or her with personal support and encouragement throughout recovery. Thanks to the efforts of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, Valour-IT is also able to reach patients in VA hospitals who would benefit from a Valour-IT laptop.

Every cent raised for Project Valour-IT goes directly to the purchase and shipment of voice-activated laptops for wounded servicemembers. As of October 2006, Valour-IT has distributed nearly 600 laptops to severely wounded Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines across the country.

Project Valour-IT is a simple idea with profound impact. It's grateful Americans, providing laptops with voice-activated software for severely wounded troops. Project Valour-IT offers a way for us to tell them we have not forgotten their sacrifices, and that is truly priceless. In many, many ways what we are trying to do is reconnect them to the world; remind them that they are not alone. That they still have something to contribute, that they are still a vital part of this nation, and that even though they may have lost parts of themselves that they can never recover, though they may temporarily be feeling hopeless, helpless, even alone, they aren't.

Someone remembers. Someone still cares. And when they get out of the hospital, America will find a way for them to rejoin the community and be useful again. For a wounded vet facing traumatic and painful injuries, that knowledge alone is beyond price.

Please dig deep. You cannot know the value of the hope your small contributions can bring to those who have already given so much on our behalf.

If you wish to donate, you can use the button below or the one in my sidebar, or send a check (with MARINES in all caps on it!) to:

Soldiers' Angels
Project Valour-IT Fund
1792 E. Washington Blvd
Pasadena, Ca 91104

If you're a blogger, join a team, any team will do. Tell your friends, family and neighbors about Valour-IT, challenge your co-workers or employer to match donations, consider involving clubs, churches, or charitable organizations. If you have any contacts in the media, local or national newspapers, radio, TV, whatever, whoever, however, spread the word!

I know I can count on your support for this, just hit the button so my team gets credit! and... Thank you!

Yes, there's a good bit of good-natured interservice rivalry fun in the interests of raising some money for a good cause, but at the end of the day what really matters is not which team you support, but that you find it in your hearts to support a worthwhile cause. Because our wounded vets have given more in the service of our country than most of us will ever be able to repay.

If you were wondering why I chose the Marines Fundraising Team, well, I love tanks, and I love fighter jets, and I love those great big ships and subs, but in the end, I joined the Marines Fundraising Team because of the Marine you see right there, down on one knee...

He served in Korea, as Infantry, in the Military Police and he was a proud member of the Marines' Drum and Bugle Corps.

And he just happens to be my Dad! Handsome, isn't he? Of course he is, that's why they let him be a Marine! and I bet you thought it was a coincidence that Marines are so darn good looking!

I'm proud of my Dad, and I'm proud of each of every one of our troops serving in the United States Military, whether its the Army, Navy, Air Force or the Marines. These brave men and women deserve our support, and Project Valour-IT is a great way to say Thank You!

Posted by LindaSoG at 06:18 AM | Comments (4)

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October 28, 2007

Hearts and Minds

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RELEASE No. 20071026-01
October 26, 2007

Iraqi Army at Besmaya Installation Support San Diego Fire Victims
By U.S. Army Sgt 1st Class Charlene Sipperly
Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq Public Affairs

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Members of the Iraqi Army in Besmaya collected a donation for the San Diego, Calif., fire victims Thursday night at the Besmaya Range Complex in a moving ceremony to support Besmaya's San Diego residents.

Iraqi Army Col. Abbass, the commander of the complex, presented a gift of $1,000 to U.S. Army Col. Darel Maxfield, Besmaya Range Complex officer in charge, Multi-National Security Transition Command Iraq, to send to the fire victims in California.

The money was collected from Iraqi officers and enlisted soldiers in Besmaya. In a speech given during the presentation, Col. Abbass stated that he and the Iraqi soldiers were connected with the American people in many ways, and they will not forget the help that the American government has given the Iraqi people. Abbass was honored to participate by sending a simple fund of $1,000 to the American people in San Diego, to lower the suffering felt by the tragedy.

That is awesome! Just awesome!

Hat tips: OpFor, by way of And Still I Persist (who reminds us that the average pay in the Iraqi Army is about $300 a month), by way of Wollfe.

Posted by LindaSoG at 10:11 PM | Comments (8)

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October 19, 2007

Oh the horror!

If you like pictures of American Troops torturing innocent Iraqi children... you'll love this site. Here's a sample:

There's lots more "torture" to be seen... so run along now and enjoy...

H/T and smooches to my friend Wollfe, who made my day with that one!

Posted by LindaSoG at 06:33 AM | Comments (2)

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October 15, 2007

Brothers in Battle

Many of you will remember HBO's "Band of Brothers" miniseries which told the story of members of 101st Airborne Division. The miniseries did honor to those brave troops, and now, two surviving members have written a book about their experience called "Brothers in Battle: Best of Friends," which was recently published by the Berkley Publishing Group.

I just read an article about it, and I wasn't halfway through before my blood pressure went up and a cold, dark anger ran through me. It wasn't the article itself, that was well written, and summed up the book admirably. It was this quote from the publisher that got me ticked off.

And the book comes at just the right time, says Berkley's Natalee Rosenstein. "It's a period of time when we're all looking for real heroes," she said.

There's never a wrong time to do honor to this Nation's heroes, no matter which war they fought in, but that statement implies that there are no heroes to be found during this period of time, during this war.

Whatever period of time you're talking about Natalee, it ain't this one, and whoever "we" is, it ain't me.

There is no shortgage of real heroes from this period of time and you don't have to look far to find them:

Air Force Staff Sgt. Joshua J. Abrahamson
Army 3rd Armored Cavalry
Marine Corps 1st Lt. Elliott L. Ackerman
Marine Corps Sgt. Jarred L. Adams
Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Christopher S. Adlesperger
Air Force Staff Sgt. Edward B. Albietz
Army Spc. Jose Alvarez
Army Special Forces Maj. Jason L. Amerine
Marine Corps 1st Sgt. Paul T. Archie
Army Pfc. James J. Arellano
Army National Guard Capt. Joel Arends
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew G. Axelson
Army Cpl. Nathaniel S. Baughman
Navy Lt. Cmdr. Benito E. Baylosis
Air Force Capt. Johnathan E. Bennett
Army National Guard Sgt. Robert Betterton
Air Force Staff Sgt. Timothy Bishop
Army Sgt. 1st Class Raymond E. Bittinger
Marine Corps 1st Lt. Stephen J. Boada
Army Reserve Maj. Derek P. Bonaldo
Navy Lt. Bryan Boudreaux
Former Army Spc. Teresa Broadwell
Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class Nathan B. Bruckenthal
Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Joseph P. Buhain
Army Master Sgt. Richard Burnette
Marine Corps Capt. Alfred L. Butler IV
Marine Corps Reserve Cpl. Mark A. Camp
Air Force Maj. Kim N. Campbell
Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Kevin Carpenter
Air Force Tech. Sgt. John A. Chapman
Marine Corps Maj. William D. Chesarek Jr.
Marine Corps Capt. Brian R. Chontosh
Army Reserve Spc. Jeremy Church
Navy Chief Petty Officer Brian Cissell
Army Col. James H. Coffman Jr.
Marine Corps Sgt. Willie L. Copeland III
Marine Corps Reserve Cpl. Todd J. Corbin
Army National Guard Capt. Matthew W. Cousins
Air Force Staff Sgt. Earl I. Covel
Air Force Senior Airman Jason D. Cunningham
Army Master Sgt. Tracy L. Cutler
Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Reginald Dean
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Alan P. Dementer
Marine Corps Lt. Col. Todd S. Desgrosseilliers
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Danny P. Dietz
Marine Corps Maj. Frank Diorio
Army Sgt. Maj. William J. Doherty
Marine Corps Cpl. Jason L. Dunham
Marine Corps Maj. Armando Espinoza
Air National Guard Tech. Sgt. Michael Frady
Army Reserve Capt. Brian S. Freeman
Marine Corps Sgt. Jason A. Gagliano
Army Reserve Sgt. Ryan Gallucci
Air Force Chief Master Sgt. John Gebhardt
Air Force Maj. Matthew R. Glover
Army Capt. Brennan S. Goltry
Army Special Forces Sgt. 1st Class B. Charles Good
Navy Reserve Capt. Matthew C. Gratton
Army National Guard Pfc. Justin Hair
Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Max Hamlin
Former Army Reserve Chief Warrant Officer 3 Karl Hannan
Army Reserve 1st Sgt. Karen Henderson
Army National Guard Sgt. Leigh Ann Hester
Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 Lori Hill
Air National Guard Maj. Pat Houtman
Marine Corps Reserve Sgt. Jeff Hunter
Army National Guard Spc. Cheryl Ivanov
Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Bradley A. Kasal
Air Force Master Sgt. Michael L. Keehan III
Air Force Senior Airman Phillip M. King
Army Staff Sgt. Shane M. Koele
Army Spc. Kraig Lemme
Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Nathaniel R. Leoncio
Army National Guard Sgt. Nathaniel ‘Brad’ Lindsey
Air Force 1st Lt. Brian Lomax
Former Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Marcus Luttrell
Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Kevin Lynn
Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Chad Malmberg
Army Reserve Maj. Christopher Matson
Army National Guard 1st Lt. Michael McCarty
Marine Corps Sgt. Aubrey L. McDade Jr.
Army National Guard Spc. Christopher Merchant
Army National Guard Sgt. Jason I. Mike
Army Special Forces Master Sgt. David Miles
Marine Corps Reserve Sgt. Luke Miller
Former Marine Corps Sgt. Robert J. Mitchell Jr.
Army National Guard Chief Warrant Officer 2 Marcus Moore
Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Timothy F. Nein
Army National Guard Warrant Officer 3 Austin Norris
Marine Corps Reserve Staff Sgt. Kent Padmore
Army Staff Sgt. William Thomas Payne
Army National Guard Capt. Brian J. Pipkin
Air Force Capt. Craig D. Prather
Army National Guard Sgt. Joseph E. Proctor
Army Special Forces Master Sgt. Anthony S. Pryor
Former Army National Guard Spc. Ashley Pullen
Army Spc. Gregory Pushkin
Army Spc. Ignacio Ramirez
Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Martin K. Richburg
Army Sgt. Tommy Rieman
Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Joshua P. Roller
Army Sgt. Michael Row
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Juan M. Rubio
Army National Guard 1st Lt. Matthew Salo
Army Sgt. Micheaux M. Sanders
Army Special Forces Master Sgt. Sarun Sar
Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Bradley Sapp
Former Marine Corps Capt. Jason P. Schauble
Air Force Senior Airman Adam P. Servais
Air Force Tech. Sgt. Michael Shropshire
Navy Lt. Brian Skubin
Army National Guard Sgt. Keith L. Smette
Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul R. Smith
Army National Guard Maj. Scott H. Southworth
Army National Guard Chief Warrant Officer 4 Robert Stacy
Army National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Chad M. Stephens
Army Col. Michael E. Stout
Air National Guard Master Sgt. Henry Stroisch
Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Jason D. Taggart
Army Reserve Sgt. Ryan Taylor
Navy Chief Petty Officer James R. Theriault
Army National Guard 1st Lt. David Tiedeman
Army Spc. Anthony Tonasket
Army National Guard Sgt. Seth Randell Trahan
Former Air Force Airman 1st Class Charity Lee Trueblood
Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Jo Turner
Arkansas Army National Guard Capt. John Vanlandingham
Coast Guard Petty Officer Sarah A. Vega
Air Force Reserve Sr. Master Sgt. Paul S. Veresko
Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Anthony L. Viggiani
Army Cpl. Clinton A. Warrick
Air National Guard Tech. Sgt. Kevin Whalen
Air National Guard Master Sgt. Letitia Whitaker
Army National Guard Chief Warrant Officer William White
Army Staff Sgt. Jeremy Wilzcek
Marine Corps Sgt. Chadwick L. Winegar
Army Lt. Col. Brian E. Winski
Air Force Maj. Keith M. Wolak
Marine Corps Sgt. Jeremiah Workman
Army Maj. Ryan L. Worthan
Army Special Forces Staff Sgt. Jonathan A. Zapien
Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Matthew W. Zedwick
Marine Corps Maj. Douglas A. Zembiec

Shame on you Natalee, for using the publishing of this book to insult today's heroes who have given their all for this Country and for your freedom.

Posted by LindaSoG at 05:59 AM | Comments (4)

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September 30, 2007

From way back when

when Hollywood knew right from wrong:

I found it at Head Noises.

Posted by LindaSoG at 04:12 PM | Comments (1)

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September 28, 2007

Gotcha!

Probably not a Marine:

A Marine would have held his ground.

Posted by LindaSoG at 07:20 AM | Comments (2)

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September 20, 2007

Lake Worth Prefers Pets to Vets

UPDATE: Its the City of Lake Worth, not the County of Palm Beach. My apologies for the error.

Yeah, you read that right. Palm Beach Lake Worth has cancelled its Annual Veterans Day Parade due to "budget cuts."

"We just don't have the money," Commissioner Jo-Ann Golden said. "It's a bad time to do this, when we have soldiers overseas, but we just don't have the money available."

But you do have the money available Jo-Ann, you'd just rather spend it on a Pet Parade.

"As difficult as it may sound, when you're cutting 40 positions and 22 people, that makes it hard to justify funding a parade," -- Mayor Jeff Clemens

Hard to justify a parade for our Veterans, but not so hard to justify a Boat Parade, or a crafts festival or a street painting festival. You can justify squeezing the cash reserves to fund "Bonfires on the Beach" without any problem, but there's no room in the budget for a parade in honor of the Veterans who fought for your freedom?

Obviously, you have your priorities.

Near as I can tell, this is unprecedented and Palm Beach County Lake Worth now bears the distinction of being the first and only county city in the United States of America to cancel a Veterans Day Parade.

Posted by LindaSoG at 07:10 AM | Comments (7)

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September 15, 2007

Make no mistake

Look. Look closely at that picture and ask yourself, what kind of person would do such a thing?

What you see in that picture is the result of contempt for the United States of America, and contempt not only for the men and women who gave their lives serving this Country, but contempt for those who serve today.

Think about the soldier in your life, I know there is one. If its not a Veteran of wars past, its a soldier serving now. Its your son, your daughter, your father, your mother, your aunt or your uncle, or your cousins, its your neighbor's kid, or your child's former schoolmate, the kid who used to deliver your paper, the girl who used to babysit your children. Everyone knows someone who has served, or is serving now.

Imagine if that was the name of your soldier beneath those marks of contempt.

Look at that picture and tell me, do you share the contempt? Do you condone the contempt?

What you see in that picture is the result of the twisted and demented ideology of the party of Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, John Murtha and Hillary Clinton. The people who continue to elect Ted Kennedy and John Kerry. They say they are anti-war but what they are is anti-America. And as you can see, they hate our troops.

If you're a democrat, then this what you stand for, this is the ideology of what you support. Make no mistake about it. This is the true face of the democrats, and the only face of the democrats, because there is no such thing as a moderate democrat, no such thing as a middle of the road democrat, no such thing as an extremist democrat. In the end, there is no difference between extremely pregnant and moderately pregnant. You are what you are. In the end, they are only democrats and this outrage, this insult to our Nation and the men and women who serve is what they stand for. If you support them, then their ideology is your ideology.

Posted by LindaSoG at 09:33 PM | Comments (2)

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August 30, 2007

Ghost Army

It is a story of deception, showmanship, art and ingenuity kept secret for nearly 50 years.

In June of 1944, an exceptional U.S. Army unit went into action in Normandy. Its weapons included hundreds of inflatable tanks and a one-of-a-kind collection of soud effects records, and it carried out its battlefield mission without firing a shot. The unit was officially called the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, but it was known to its men as The Ghost Army.

The mission of this top-secret unit was to create a “traveling road show” to deceive the Germans about the location and strength of American troops on battlefields across Europe. From Normandy to the Rhine, they staged 20 battlefield deceptions, employing an array of inflatables (tanks, trucks, jeeps, airplanes), sound trucks, phony radio transmissions and even playacting to fool the enemy. Like actors in a repertory theater, the men of the 23rd had to ask themselves with each mission: “Who are we this week? What’s our story?” Then they would put on a show, with the Nazis as their audience.

"It's amazing... the fakery we were able to perpetrate upon the enemy."

That's just amazing! I can't wait to see this film.

Posted by LindaSoG at 05:26 AM | Comments (1)

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August 29, 2007

In case you were wondering

What the Mainstream Media doesn't want you to see: