Friday, 11 July 2008
 

If I die before you wake (Updated and bumped)
Contributed by Bill Faith

[Originally posted 2007-04-12]

Bob Prinselaar emails:

This will touch your heart. Sure brought back some memories.

http://www.flashdemo.net/gallery/wake/index.htm

Bob

***

Retried grunt and Blue Star Father Jim Gardner dropped by to let me know that If I Die Before You Wake was recorded by Dustin Evans, who unfortunately is not given credit at the link Bob sent. In the process of cross-checking that info I ran across this YouTube video which I know you'll enjoy:

Contributed by Bill Faith on July 11, 2008 at 12:14 AM in Bob Prinselaar, Caring about our troops, The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (25) | TrackBack

Monday, 31 March 2008
 

The official OWD Music Video of the Month
Contributed by Bill Faith

If I could find a way to imbed this one I would but I can't so you'll just have to watch it here.

This post will remain at the top of the site through the end of March.

***

You'll like this one, too.

Contributed by Bill Faith on March 31, 2008 at 11:59 PM in Music, National Defense, The American Warrior, US Marine Corps | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Friday, 22 February 2008
 

An Officer and a Farmer
Contributed by Bill Faith

Something a little different than our normal fare but definitely worth reading. Click here (pdf warning). You met the author, Dr. Laura Gutman, in Russ's latest post. Russ and I have invited Dr Gutman to start sending us guest posts whenever she has time and the inclination and she's indicated an interest in doing so. I'm looking forward to reading them.

Contributed by Bill Faith on February 22, 2008 at 06:25 PM in The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Monday, 18 February 2008
 

Chronic Warrior Syndrome
Contributed by Russ Vaughn

One of the things I’ve come to love about writing for the Internet is the new friends I make whose perception sometimes make me smack my forehead in wonder that in all my years some insight they easily offer up had so completely eluded me until now. One such is a jarhead, and believe me, as an old paratrooper, I use that term with respect and brotherly affection. Old Leatherneck Troy Watson introduced me to the concept of Chronic Marine Syndrome, which as best I can determine is the inspiration of retired Marine Corps Brigadier General, Mike Mulqueen.

Reading the list of symptoms associated with Chronic Marine Syndrome, I realized quickly that the New York Times and other mainstream media organizations have been right all along that those who serve their country, and especially those who have actually fought in their country’s service have most likely developed a syndrome which, considering the moral fiber of the mainstream media and the nation of sheep they seek to form and lead, could accurately be categorized by them as pathological.

Pardon me Marines in general, and General Mulqueen, specifically, but I think CMS extends beyond the Corps and infects past, present, and surely the future ranks of all American military services. Consider, if you will, but a few of the symptoms General Mulqueen has defined as markers of this unique infliction, as well as some others I have added:

First and foremost, having confidence in who they are

Possessing pride in oneself, one’s organization and the country they serve

Being knowledgeable of and comfortable with the terms honor, courage and commitment

Determined to see the mission, regardless of temporary setbacks, accomplished

Often either respected or despised by others, due to their unique abilities and talents

Internally and essentially immune to organizational political correctness

Able to meet you with a firm handshake and look you in the eye

When not a warrior, a first responder, cop, fireman, nurse, doctor, EMT, etc.

If he/she says “Hang on, I’m coming for you,” you can bet your life, they’re coming for you

Shares the tremendous pride and the undying respect of his or her family

Shares the tremendous pride and the undying respect of his or her buddies, military and civilian

Shares rations, water and candy bars with the unfortunate children of war

Shares, unfortunately, the gratitude of only some of us in this nation he or she protects

Yes, I’m beginning to see where the media can make a sensational case that these people, these soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen that we send out in harm’s way to defend us, somehow possess a demonstrable set of symptoms that clearly differentiate them from far too many in America today, especially these selfsame parasites in the mainstream media who greedily suck at the nation’s wounds and feast on the world’s offal. Since these symptoms seem to apply solely to a unique minority of volunteers who place selflessness above all other virtues, a condition of some rarity in this age of “me first,” I can now understand how those staunch, courageous patriots at the New York Times and their fellow travelers at the broadcast networks see our returning warriors as unwell in some way.

Yep, I simply can question their judgment no longer; our troops returning from the Mideast wars are indeed afflicted and it’s time to give that affliction a catchy name like the one the media loves for my generation of warriors: PTSD. However, considering the group of symptoms described above, I think we should call this current problem, CWS: Chronic Warrior Syndrome.

Long may our young warriors be afflicted. HOOOAHH!

Russ Vaughn

Vietnam 65-66

Contributed by Russ Vaughn on February 18, 2008 at 01:11 PM in Russ Vaughn, The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Monday, 12 November 2007
 

A Painful Lesson Learned
Contributed by Russ Vaughn

The heartfelt, emotional post, “Today I Met the Finest,” is a fine tribute for Veterans Day and one particular comment reminded me of one of the most important lessons learned from the Vietnam War. The author writes,

“One old Vet came up to me and said he was sorry. Sorry because he and his didn't stand up for me and mine after Viet Nam. I told him that we had stand on our own, we had our war and we had to defend it ourselves. I thanked him for the thought. He was still sorry. That doesn't matter.”

That brought a lump to my throat because that was one of the most painful aftereffects of my service in Vietnam, rejection by the vets of WWII and Korea, whom I had grown up lionizing, and whose own service and sacrifice had inspired my own willingness to volunteer. It is still painful to remember that my generation of warriors was dismissed by our own heroes as drug-addicted losers and even worse: war criminals and baby killers. That, in spite of some of us having faced combat as fierce and deadly as anything they had in their own wars. My 82d Airborne roommate at Fort Bragg in 1967, SSGT Charley Morris, (R.I.P. Charley, and Happy Veterans Day) who had won the Medal of Honor serving with the 173d Airborne Brigade in Vietnam, was every bit as much a hero to me as Audie Murphy was to them. 

But they didn’t see it that way. They believed Walter Cronkite more than they believed us. My own tentative attempts to associate with veterans organizations were quickly squelched by the hostility encountered there. Worse, the early Vietnam Veterans organizations were antiwar, led by phony heroes like John Kerry, who helped create and perpetuate the negative image of Vietnam veterans that persists to this day among Liberals. Fortunately time has mellowed and mitigated the attitudes of some of the old warriors as evidenced by the quote above. I would hope that old vet speaks for the larger number and is an indication that they have come to realize that they were misled by a dishonest, disgruntled few who were given far greater voice than they deserved by a liberal media with an ingrained antiwar, anti-military agenda.

And that is the painful lesson that I think so many of my fellow Vietnam vets have learned. Don’t let a dishonest, dishonorable and deceiving media lead you to abandon those who serve now and face the same sort of hostility we faced. Yes, I know the liberal media, for all practical purposes the promotional arm of the Democratic party, every day proclaim their support for the troops while simultaneously doing their very level best to undermine the troops’ missions. What the Dems and the media have never seemed to grasp is that undercutting a soldier’s ability to accomplish his mission is a hostile act.

From the support I see my generation giving to the current generation of warriors, I think we’ve learned our lesson well. Vietnam veterans are at the forefront in providing support for those now serving. It was largely through the brave efforts of a group of Vietnam veterans, the Swift Boat Veterans, that America was spared the disgrace of having one of those many  phony Vietnam heroes, and a traitor as well, serving as commander-in-chief. And true to form, even now, Democrats and liberal media snarl disparagingly about swiftboating, using it as a term of infamy rather than the heroic term it truly is. That in itself, should show quite clearly which side they are still on and make it easier for us to never forget, to never abandon our sons and daughters at war.

Russ Vaughn

Contributed by Russ Vaughn on November 12, 2007 at 12:10 AM in Russ Vaughn, The American Warrior, Viet Nam | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Sunday, 11 November 2007
 

Michael Marks: The Things I Carry
Contributed by Bill Faith

One of my favorite poets emails:

Bill,

With Veteran's Day just ahead I sat down to write a slightly different type of poem that was inspired after meeting a retired serviceman who had served for over 20 years and grappled, in very stoic reserve, with lingering PTSD issues. It is not the usual "stuff of poems" but a rather vivid scene came to mind and I wrote "The Things I Carry" -- since you have been so kindly interested in some of my earlier poems, I thought you might like to read it.  As always, they are written with the deepest respect and thanks for those who defend freedom.

The Things I Carry

The old train lumbered up the track amid a hoofbeat clatter,
its cloudy windows streaked by rain that fell in gentle patter.
With duffle heavy on my back I trudged along the aisle
Until I saw an empty seat next to a welcome smile.

A stifled groan curled in my chest beneath the weight I bore;
I shrugged the duffle off my back, it thudded on the floor.
“That pack looks awfully heavy friend” he said with narrowed stare,
“You got a load of cinderblocks or something tucked in there?”

My gaze fell to the weathered bag, its corners taped and patched,
the olive drab a faded grey, one canvas strap mismatched.
I forced a smile that in my heart was anything but merry
and through my gritted teeth replied “Its just the things I carry.”

Perhaps it was the lonely night, the thunder and the rain,
a sense of kindred friendship that I couldn’t quite explain,
but with a snap of rusted clip the duffle opened wide
and reaching in I showed him all the things I had inside.

A heavy armored vest was first, its kevlar torn and frayed
the gaping hole stained dark with blood was caused by a grenade.
“My best friend’s life” I whispered, fearing that my voice would crack;
“He gave it up to save me in the desert of Iraq.”

“We grew up just like brothers ever since the age of nine,
fishing up on Grady’s Pond or flyin kites on twine,
our first car was a Mustang, man we made that baby slide.
He always calls me ‘slick,’ I mean... he did until he died.”

A brick of granite followed, dark and grey as stormy sky,
engraved upon its polished face, a date in mid-July.
“I wasn’t home the day I lost my dad,” I muttered low,
remembering that awful day so many years ago.

“Our unit drew a line that month in deep Afghanistan
protecting little schoolgirls from a bloody Taliban.”
My somber gaze fell to the floor and fixed on muddy shoes.
“Dad was gone two weeks before I even got the news.”

The silence hung a moment broken only by the rain,
the beating of my heart over the rumble of the train,
before I heard him ask about the thing I left inside,
a mason jar that wads of dirty laundry failed to hide.

“Don’t open that,” I said too fast, my voice now tinged with fear.
“There’s things in there that, trust me, you don’t ever wanna hear.”
I thought about the demons bottled up inside that jar;
some things are better left alone... left just the way they are.

“I’ve seen a lot of people die, and let me tell you friend,
the sounds, the smells...” I bowed my head, “sometimes they never end.”
I don’t know why the lid slips off, it mostly does at night;
and it can take me hours just to get it back on tight.”

The man then spoke in earnest tones that tugged my memory,
“It seems a lot of weight to haul, but why I cannot see.
What makes a fellah like yourself lug such a load of pain?”
A furrow crossed my tired brow, I struggled to explain.

I spoke to him of duty, of the things a man just did,
of old regrets that in the darkness of the heart lay hid;
the ghosts of fallen friends you just can’t bring yourself to bury,
the bridges crossed and moments lost are just the things I carry.

Instead of being saddened now he seemed a bit amused,
“I admire your resolve bub, but you’ve got it all confused;
The memories you’re s’posed to keep aren’t those that weigh a ton,”
and handing me three items said “I’ll trade you one for one.”

The photo showed two lanky guys in t-shirts and blue jeans,
both leaning on a Mustang like a pair of Steve McQueens.
The memories came flooding back of racing ‘round our home
in an overpowered yellow wedge of spoilers and chrome.

The letter was a short one folded carefully in thirds,
my dad had never been a man of very many words;
In careful print it said his greatest pride since life began
was watching me grow up to be a soldier and a man.

Through misty eyes I looked the last upon the ocean shell,
if it had a hidden meaning I’d be damned if I could tell.
“You know the trick,” he softly said, “just hold it to your ear,
and listen to the things in life you’ve earned the right to hear.”

I heard the sounds of my home town where screams were shouts of cheer,
as kids ran up and down the field without the need to fear;
the ring of freedom’s many voices blended in the air,
the sound of open singing and the sound of open prayer.

I turned to find an empty seat,  just air and little more
than dust that slowly settled down upon the wooden floor.
Yet on that evanescence hung a voice I knew at last
a whisper from my memory, an echo from my past:

“Remember slick, the way to honor  those of us now gone;
is searching for the best ahead in each and every dawn.
Hold on to the good times, not the moments dark and scary,
I’m telling you to let ‘em go...  they aren’t yours to carry.”


Michael Marks   ©2007

Awesome, Michael. Thank you as always.

Enjoy more of Michael's writing at IWVPA.

Contributed by Bill Faith on November 11, 2007 at 12:20 AM in Michael Marks, Poetry, The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

James Hooker: "Kids" - Christmas 1944
Contributed by Bill Faith

See James's entire post, including a link to a much better version of the video, here.

Contributed by Bill Faith on November 11, 2007 at 12:10 AM in Christmas, The American Warrior, WW II | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Friday, 17 August 2007
 

Where Freedom Flies
Contributed by Bill Faith

Contributed by Bill Faith on August 17, 2007 at 02:02 PM in Music, The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Wednesday, 15 August 2007
 

This summer's must read
Contributed by Bill Faith

Lone Survivor - Top Reading Choice of the Summer
George "Rurik" Mellinger

xxxx
xxx		xxx
xxxx

A military mission gone horribly wrong, resulting in a bloody struggle against overwhelming odds, is a common enough tale. But Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell with Patrick Robinson (Little, Brown 2007) is a rare example of the genre. Defeat, and escape from complete catastrophe are not the usual subjects for uplift and inspiration. And in any case, I usually detest “uplift and inspiration” as nonsense for the weak-spined needing continual bracing. But this book inspires anyway, perhaps because it is not intended to be “inspirational”. You may read Lone Survivor as an inspiring adventure of a warrior battling against odds and numbers too great, and somehow surviving. But if you read it only as an adventure tale, you will have missed the author’s purpose and his deeper message.

It would be easy to make such a mistake. The first two chapters got off to a very slow and awkward start for me. The tone was excessively conversational. With nary a complete sentence. Just fragments. And lots of slang usage. Disjointed, you understand. And disorganized. Like this.  And everything seemingly exaggerated. Marcus’ boasting, and his eulogies to his friends, now dead, which seemed to rise to the level of hagiography.

With the third chapter, the tenor of the book completely changed, and the story became far more focused, tighter and better organized. In this, and the following chapters, Marcus Luttrell describes the gritty path which led to becoming a SEAL. This enthralled me, and illuminated much of the boasting which had gone before, and also the determination which was to follow. The training is always stressful and brutal in any of the military’s voluntary programs, Officer Candidate School (which this reviewer tried unsuccessfully), Airborne, Ranger or Special Forces, or SEALs. Luttrell maintains that SEAL training is the toughest of all, and reading his description, I’m quite prepared to believe him. Every branch of every service convinces itself that they are an elite, better and tougher than all the others, believing the same thing. But the SEALs seem to have the bragging rights. This hundred and twenty pages, by itself would be an excellent lesson for anyone who has never done military service, what it means to become a warrior, and why they do it. ...

Read the whole thing here.

Contributed by Bill Faith on August 15, 2007 at 12:03 AM in Afghanistan, Books, George Mellinger, The American Warrior, US Navy | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Tuesday, 17 July 2007
 

The Involunteers
Contributed by Russ Vaughn

One thing to me rings loud and clear
Through mainstream media sources:
Libs don’t understand, Volunteer,
When it comes to our fighting forces.
Their memories hark to former days,
Dubious deferments due to classes,
Craven cowering in cynical ways,
Just to cover their cowardly asses.

Pony-tailed pundits of treason foregoing,
Now scoff and condemn with derision,
Volunteer warriors, warned and knowing,
Who’ve made a fateful decision,
Foregoing the comforts liberals love,
That very succor to preserve,
A concept Libs are ignorant of:
To reap benefits, one should serve.

Ever fearful, Libs cower in classrooms,
Proclaiming the due of the masses;
On graves of the brave, toxic mushrooms,
Still cravenly covering their asses.
Preaching, protesting, showing their ire,
Cat-box covering all their worst fears,
Cowardly curs afraid of war’s fire,
They’re our nation’s Involunteers.

I know a truth from mankind’s past,
A truth that sure prevails;
Those who fight are those will last,
Throughout all man’s travails.
But those making phony excuses,
As false and fearful disguise,
Will feel history’s worst abuses,
Enslaved by their cowardly lies.

The author served six years in the United States Army as a volunteer at a time when so many were being unwillingly conscripted into the Vietnam conflict. Many of them, untold thousands of them served bravely, but this old paratrooper noncom will tell you this straight certain: in all-hell’s-breaking-loose combat, I preferred volunteers every time. When it was all hitting the fan, I had an inherent inability to place my full trust, and perhaps my life, in the hands of citizens who had been compelled by force of law to be serving beside me. I am now frequently on military installations all over the country and will bet any “Old Army” types that our current volunteer forces are vastly superior in training, intelligence, spirit and physical fitness to any forces America has ever fielded. They are Volunteers.

Russ Vaughn
2d Bn, 327^th Parachute Infantry Regiment
101^st Airborne Division
Vietnam 65-66

Contributed by Russ Vaughn on July 17, 2007 at 12:47 AM in Poetry, Russ Vaughn, The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Sunday, 01 July 2007
 

In my mail: "Lone Survivor"
Contributed by Bill Faith

Lone Survivor
The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing
and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10

Actually it came Tuesday but between a visit from my grandson, the No Illegal Left Behind battle and having a bunch of errands to run Friday it took me till yesterday afternoon to get started reading it. I can tell already it's not going to be a fun read but it will definitely be an interesting read. I'll be back with a more detailed report later. For now check out Blackfive's post here and read a sample chapter here.

Contributed by Bill Faith on July 1, 2007 at 01:32 AM in Books, The American Warrior, US Navy | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Saturday, 23 June 2007
 

From a Chaplain in Iraq
Contributed by J D

"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...."

Read the rest of this inspiring post.

[Bumped by the webmaster to keep it near the top of the site longer]

Contributed by J D on June 23, 2007 at 01:00 AM in Iraq, The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Monday, 18 June 2007
 

The fat lady never sings for Misty 1.
(American Patriot: The Life and Wars of Colonel Bud Day)
Contributed by Bill Faith

I finally managed to finish reading American Patriot, Robert Coram's excellent bio of Col. Bud Day. It's not that I didn't find it interesting and very readable -- I read it in three sittings -- just that some days my back gives me more trouble than others.  I can't begin to compete with Rurik's fine review of this excellent book but maybe I can at least throw out a few more reasons why you need a copy of it. You need a copy because without it you'll never know  ... 

• ... where the title of this post came from.

• ... which Old War Dog the author quotes in wrapping up his discussion of Col. Day's last (or not) battle.

• ... which former President Bud Day hates almost as much as, or possibly more than, he does John Kerry, and why (and one more reason you should too.)

• ... which egotistical low life son of a bitch was responsible for the Air Force's failure to award its most decorated living hero the retirement rank he deserved.

• ... whether Col. Day's reason for wanting to be buried upside down is the same as Major General Don Shepperd's. (I'm going to have to save my pennies for copy of Gen. Sheppard's book to find out myself.)

Contributed by Bill Faith on June 18, 2007 at 12:15 AM in The American Warrior, US Air Force | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Saturday, 16 June 2007
 

RIP: General Robin Olds
Contributed by Bill Faith

Gary "Boomer" Adams emails:

Another of our American legends passes on. I'd like to think I shared some of the airspace in SEA with him when he was Commander of the 'Wolfpack'. Maybe even had him on the end of the boom and didn't know it.

Below the fold:

• Legendary fighter pilot Robin Olds dies

See also:

• Blackfive: Robin Olds Passes On.
• Walter J. Boyne: Mig Sweep

Legendary fighter pilot Robin Olds dies

6/15/2007 - U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AFPN) -- Legendary fighter pilot, retired Brig. Gen. Robin Olds, died June 14 from congestive heart failure one month short of his 85th birthday.

General Olds, rated a triple ace for having shot down a total of 16 enemy aircraft during World War II and the Vietnam War, served his country in assignments to England, Germany, Libya, Thailand and the United States, in positions of squadron, base, group and wing commander, and assignments to Headquarters U.S. Air Force and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

"Triple-ace Robin Olds' legendary leadership and heroic service to the cause of freedom have been an inspiration to our nation and our Air Force," said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley. "He is one of our 'great captains' and a pioneer of air power.

"He became an ace with 12 aerial victories during World War II, flying P-38 Lightnings and P-51 Mustangs, and later shot down 4 MiGs in Vietnam to bring his total to 16. He also led the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing -- the famed "Wolfpack" -- to a record 24 aerial victories, a total unsurpassed by any other wing during the war in Southeast Asia," the general said. ...

Contributed by Bill Faith on June 16, 2007 at 02:18 PM in The American Warrior, US Air Force | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Tuesday, 12 June 2007
 

"The One"
Contributed by Bill Faith

I'm not going to have a lot to say about this one till the review copy I've been promised arrives but do check out Blackfive's post here and follow the links. I already know enough just from that post to know this won't be a book I have to make myself make time to read simply because I promised to review it. I can hardly wait till it gets here and it will affect my blogging when it does.

***

Read the first chapter of the book online here. (H/T: Michelle Malkin)

Contributed by Bill Faith on June 12, 2007 at 12:53 AM in Afghanistan, Books, The American Warrior, US Navy | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Monday, 11 June 2007
 

Evil Requires No Master; Just a Few Willing Accomplices.
Contributed by The Gray Dog

The Gray Dog’s Note: I’m writing this to follow up on issues raised and responded to from my last post, “There Is No Us in U.S.” My discussion of evil is strictly confined to mere mortal men. I will leave any spiritual discussion of evil to theologians and others more competent than I to offer judgments.

In my last article I discussed a couple of loosely defined demographic groups I hastily labeled “them” and “us.” Even without a detailed description, I don’t think anyone was mislead or mistaken as to the fact that I was simply identifying two groups of mere mortals whose major differences were rooted in moral, political and philosophical opposition. I, The Gray Dog and most of my cohorts, both bipeds and quadrupeds, are part of the group referred to as “us.” Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Hillary and all other crustaceans and slithering reptiles belong to the group known as “them.” However, a number of respondents to my article “There Is No Us in U.S.” in private emails and phone calls, referred to a more mystical group known simply as “They.” Unlike “us” and “them,” “They” appear to possess prescience and omnipotence close to a ten rating on the TDS (True Deity Scale,) therefore affording “They” the honor of capitalization.

In my article, I expressed anguish over feelings of frustration, helplessness and betrayal. Responses to my rant ranged from “So, you’re having a bad day?” to “’They’, have been planning and plotting this for years! ‘We’ are so glad you have finally awakened.” I think “we” may be the subject of yet another post, but back to “They” for now.

Now, as a BLOGGER, Forum Administrator and all around well heeled eDog, I find myself on a lot of strange email lists. One of the real odd-balls is a tax-evading, self-proclaimed Libertarian of a Conservative persuasion, who agrees with Rosie O’Donnell that Bush blew up the World Trade Center. Hat-Tip to my buddy Bill Faith for getting me on that list. How ya’ doin’ Harry?

Continue reading "Evil Requires No Master; Just a Few Willing Accomplices."

Contributed by The Gray Dog on June 11, 2007 at 10:15 PM in Current Affairs, Dem Dumbness, G W Bush, Patriotism, Politics, The American Warrior, The Gray Dog | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Sunday, 03 June 2007
 

It's a question of humility....
Contributed by antimedia

....I was reading through my rss feed yesterday when I came to this post at Andi's world. It seems some supposed retired Col. didn't like the blogger Milo Freeman's liberal attitude, and so he threatened to have his blog shut down. Rather silly, if you ask me, but the "Colonel" also said that he wished Milo would die. That's not silly. That's despicable. I don't care what your views are, wishing someone dead because you disagree with their ideas is as childish as it gets.

Out of curiousity, I dropped by Milo's blog and read a little.  Of course, recent posts revolve around the controversy, but this post caught my eye.

Milo writes about a Sergeant with whom he has a tense relationship, partly because they are polls apart in their political views. He closes his post with these thoughts.

Needless to say, I'm used to all sorts of pseudo-political bluster from the good Sergeant.

That being said, though, I can't help but take some offense at his last comment. Being labeled "gifted" from an early age, I tend to be defensive, rather than proud, about my education and intellect, and so I get a bit angry when people try to hold those attributes against me as a character flaw. Ever since September 11th--and especially since arriving at this unit--I've had to deal with a steady flow of anti-intellectual sentiment, and frankly it's a large part of why I have difficulty fitting in among the other soldiers.

I haven't read enough of Milo's blog to know what sort of "anti-intellectual sentiment" he's had to deal with, but the next two paragraphs might tip one off to what's going on.

I don't have time to follow up on his statements. Morales shows up, back from breakfast, and grabs the keys to the Humvee. I follow him with my gear out the door. The morning is mild, and the sun is out--the first wave of blistering heat isn't due for a couple of hours yet--but still I something about Sgt. Schultheiss' attitude worrisome. It takes me a while to identify it. Questions blur through my head.

Why is it always the intelligentsia who take the blame? Why is it the educated who are viewed as dishonest? Why is it that, in times of social crisis, the cooler heads and voices of reason are always the ones put against the wall--viewed as "threats to the state" or to "family values (as if they can be neither patriots nor a loving spouses and parents)?" Why is it that the way I speak has to make people so uncomfortable, so quick to point out my other numerous failings? Why can't I open my mouth sometimes without feeling like my personal safety is threatened?

Milo, I thank you for your service, and I hold you in the highest regard because, despite your political views, you serve in combat with honor and distinction. You are what America is all about.

Read the rest at Media Lies.

Contributed by antimedia on June 3, 2007 at 05:44 PM in The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Saturday, 02 June 2007
 

Here's an amazing story....
Contributed by antimedia

...about a Major whose right foot was blown off in an IED attack, and he's back on the job, leading his troops.

After eight months of rehabilitation at Fort Carson, Colo., Maj. Rozelle was ready to show he was combat-ready.

"When the Army puts an officer in charge of troops, it wants to make sure that the individual can get it done - lead them into battle and be successful," said Maj. Rozelle, who is now administrator for the Amputee Care Center at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

"When I took my Oath of Office, it never mentioned giving up if I was injured. It was my responsibility as a leader to lead from the front and return to duty," he said.

In March 2005, almost 20 months after being injured, Maj. Rozelle found himself in familiar territory - in Iraq and serving as commander of a cavalry troop. He was the first troop commander to redeploy to the same battlefield as an amputee in recent military history.

After completing his second tour in Iraq, the Major was assigned to a place where his experience could be put to good use.

Today the major finds himself at Walter Reed doing the same thing he's always done - leading from the front and setting the example. This time, it's fellow amputees benefiting from Maj. Rozelle's counsel, experiences and motivational techniques.

"I've been there," said Maj. Rozelle, who spends the bulk of his duty day establishing programs and systems for the new Military Advanced Training Center, which is scheduled to open this fall.

"I want to help them realize there is life after this kind of injury. If they work hard and have the right mind set, anything is possible."

When he's not inspiring Walter Reed patients and helping complete a state-of-the-art facility that will improve Walter Reed's capacity to care for amputee patients, Maj. Rozelle competes in marathons and triathlons, and also snow skis.

He's a Bronze Star with Valor recipient as well.

That's the kind of troops we have in the battle, folks.  Hands down the best there are in the world.

Crossposted at Media Lies.

Contributed by antimedia on June 2, 2007 at 03:59 PM in The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Wednesday, 30 May 2007
 

'Earthquake McGoon' home at last
Contributed by Bill Faith

See previous: Legendary pilot 'Earthquake McGoon' heads home

Famed Flier to be Buried at Arlington

NEW YORK - Fifty-three years after he was shot down on a desperate cargo-delivery flight over Vietnam, a legendary pilot and Soldier of fortune known as Earthquake McGoon will be buried Thursday at Arlington National Cemetery.

The burial plan was announced by the Pentagon on Wednesday.

Earthquake McGoon, whose real name was James B. McGovern Jr., was one of the first two Americans killed in the Vietnam conflict. His remains were recovered from an unmarked grave in a remote northern Laos village in 2002 and identified last year by forensic experts at the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command's laboratory at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. ...

Contributed by Bill Faith on May 30, 2007 at 02:30 PM in The American Warrior, Viet Nam | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Thursday, 24 May 2007
 

I have an idea....
Contributed by antimedia

[Bumped to keep it above my daily Bills Nibbles post where it will get more attention -- BF]

....Let's embed Americans with our troops.  Perhaps it will be a life-changing experience for them as well.

While I was at the Combined Press Information Center in Baghdad on my recent trip to Iraq, a pair of Spanish journalists--a newspaper reporter and a photojournalist--walked in, fresh from their embed with the 1-4 Cavalry of the First Infantry Division (the unit with which I embedded only days later). They had spent two weeks amongst the troops there, living and going on missions with them, including house-to-house searches and seizures, and their impressions of these soldiers were extremely clear.

"Absolutely amazing," said David Beriain, the reporter (and the one who spoke English), said of the young Cavalry troops. "In Spain, it is embarrassing--our soldiers are ashamed to be in the army. These young men--and they seem so young!--are so proud of what they do, and do it so well, even though it is dangerous and they could very easily be killed." Mr. Beriain explained that the company he had been embedded with had lost three men in the span of six days while he was there--one to a sniper and two to improvised explosive devices, both of which had blown armored Humvees into the air and flipped them onto their roofs. Despite this, he said, and despite some of the things they might have said in the heat of the moment after seeing another comrade die, the soldiers' resolve and morale was unshaken in the long term, and they remained committed to carrying out their mission to the best of their ability for the duration of their tours in Iraq.

It was in the process of performing that mission, of coping with the loss of loved ones, and of just being themselves as American soldiers that these young men were able to win over the admiration and affection of more than one journalist who had arrived in their midst harboring a less-than-positive opinion of the Iraq war, and of those who were tasked with prosecuting it.

"I love those guys," Mr. Beriain said, looking wistfully out the window of the media cloister in the Green Zone that is the Combined Press Information Center. "From the first time you go kick a door with them, they accept you--you're one of them. I've even got a 'family photo' with them" to remember them by. "I really hated to leave."

Such a radical transformation--and such a strong bond of affection--can rarely be forged in so little time outside of the constant, universal peril of a wartime environment. "It is those common experiences," Mr. Beriain explained, "where you are all in danger, and you go through it together. It builds a relationship instantly."

It doesn't matter how skeptical of the war a journalist might be, according to an Army public affairs officer who spoke with me about it on condition of anonymity. "So often, they come out of that experience and--even if their opinion of the war hasn't changed--they're completely won over by the troops."

"I was one of those," admitted Mr. Beriain, speaking broken English and blinking away tears. "No matter what you think of the war, or what has happened here, you cannot be around the soldiers and not be completely affected. They are amazing people, and they represent themselves and the Army better than anyone could ever imagine." A retired Army officer concurred, telling me that "young troops are some of the best goodwill ambassadors we've ever produced. It would never occur to one to not tell you what he's really thinking, and they are so earnest" that it is almost impossible not to be won over by them if given enough time.

We could start by embedding Cindy Sheehan and Ramsey Clark and John Kerry. A couple of weeks should do the trick. Or maybe not. Maybe they're too far gone to be saved.

Read the rest at Media Lies.

[Original timestamp 2007.05.23.21:40]

Contributed by antimedia on May 24, 2007 at 12:12 AM in The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Friday, 18 May 2007
 

"I'm Already Home"
Contributed by Bill Faith

Read OIF vet C J Grisham's posts here and here for background.  Thank you GSM Debbie Lee for making sure I knew about them.

Contributed by Bill Faith on May 18, 2007 at 06:42 PM in Caring about our troops, Music, The American Warrior, Video | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Colonel Bud Day, American Patriot
Contributed by Bill Faith

Many thanks to Rurik for permission to copy his Veteran-American Voices review of an excellent book we were both privileged to receive review copies of. I may or may not manage to put together a review of my own later, knowing that anything I do will suffer greatly by comparison to Rurik's piece.  In the short term, I'm nowhere close to done with my copy, due in no small part to the fact my sister and nephew both recognized it as something they'd enjoy. I have read enough of it to know I heartily agree with Rurik's recommendation to buy a copy at the first opportunity. (I've provided a convenient link for that purpose here.) For now then, Rurik's review:

American Patriot, The Life and Wars of Colonel Bud Day

Who is Colonel Bud Day? Is he the most decorated living American warrior? Or is he a three-war “lifer”, with service in World War II, Korean War, and Viet Nam? Or is he a three service “lifer”, Marines, Army, and Air Force? Is he the only American to escape from North Vietnamese captivity back to South Viet Nam? Or did he spend five and a half years resisting the Communists while a prisoner in the Hanoi Hilton? Is he an aviation hero with numerous flying accomplishments? Yep. Colonel George E. “Bud” Day was all of those and more. He also became a lawyer before he became a fighter pilot, and after retiring from active duty, he began a second career as a practicing lawyer, a career which continues to this day.

Robert Coram has written his biography, American Patriot, the Life and Wars of Colonel Bud Day, Hachette Book Group, Little, Brown & Co., New York, 2007. It is a most revealing, and even inspiring look at remarkable man, whom I used to admire, but now revere.

Bud Day’s early years were unpromising, born on the wrong side of the tracks in Sioux City, Iowa. Unpromising but for the fact that he absorbed Midwestern traditional values and an ability to cope with adversity. Dropping out of high school, Bud Day enlisted in the Marines in 1942, though he never got into combat. With time on his hands and initiative, he got in a variety of scrapes, and ended up court-martialed and sentenced to 28 days in the brig. Consequently, Bud Day, future MOH recipient, was denied the Marine Good Conduct Medal. Marriage, college and law school followed, but in early 1950, Bud Day joined the Iowa National Guard. He foresaw a coming conflict with communism, which he detested from an early age, and took a commission in the Army Reserves. In 1951 it became clear that the National Guard would not send him to Korea, so Bud Day transferred his commission to the Air Force and attended flight school. He graduated from his flight training too late for Korea, but was on the path that led to his first career. One of his first accomplishments was finding the solution to the T-33’s proclivity to catching fire on take-off and exploding. The corrective measure when the fire developed was counter-intuitive, and no pilot had survived the experience before Bud Day. Numerous other piloting accomplishments followed in the F-84 Thunderjet and F-84F Thunderstreak, including his ejection without a working parachute. (Read the book to learn the details.) Between these flying adventures, Coram takes us through the career and life developments of an Air Force pilot flying during the Cold War 1950s and 1960s. And Bud Day was becoming one of the USAF’s most proficient tactical pilots.

In 1966, Major Bud Day volunteered for assignment to Viet Nam. After flying a numerous missions over South Viet Nam in the familiar F-100D Super Sabre, in 1967 he was assigned the task of organizing a special top-secret detachment of two-seat F-100Fs which would fly as fast-FAC (forward air control) over southern North Viet Nam using the code name Misty. Their job was to fly directly over enemy positions at tree-top level, looking for targets, armed only with their guns and the smoke rockets they would use to mark the targets for faster and higher-flying attack aircraft. If the mission was not actually suicidal, it came close enough, and this elite unit suffered higher casualties than almost any other unit in Viet Nam. They were also one of the most effective units, and Bud Day devised their operational techniques.

One of the early casualties was Bud, who was shot down on August 26,1967 and captured with several broken bones. Despite being denied medical attention and mistreated, he was able to escape captivity while still with the original capturing unit, and headed south through the jungles. After an epic trek, he managed to come within sight of a Marine base at Con Thien. But at the very last minute. he was recaptured by Viet Cong, shot, and dragged back north.

Now began Bud Day’s greatest epic, five and a half years of torture and resistance, refusing to cooperate with his captors. Now Bud Day’s ability to bear adversity came to the fore. During part of this time he shared a cell with John McCain, and is able to answer authoritatively one of our current controversies. This book, and Bud Day’s word vouch that John McCain did not collaborate with the enemy as some have subsequently charged. And that may be taken in the context that Bud Day did attempt to prosecute certain other POWs whom he did believe to have betrayed their oaths, and that he vigorously disagrees with many of John McCain’s political positions. The story of Bud Day’s captivity is the largest part of the book, and is highly relevant to contemporary controversies.

Bud Day came home in 1973 and after some healing, resumed his service career, learning to fly the F-4 Phantom, despite his near-crippling injuries. In 1976, Gerald Ford awarded Bud Day his Medal of Honor. Sadly, the episode became mired in political controversy, in part because Colonel Day, formerly a life-long Democrat, was already supporting Ronald Reagan. The situation of the POWs was not good, and careers were stymied. Robert Coram does a great service in his description of the problems and controversies confronting the POWs, and how Bud Day chose to respond. And this led to Bud Day’s next career.

After leaving the Air Force in 1977, Colonel Day began a career as a practicing attorney, falling back on his education from many years before. Due to the persistent problems he came to specialize in law relating to veterans and military retirees, and several times had to sue the government he served so faithfully during his first life. This second career is also fascinating, though not quite so much as his wartime deeds, and should again earn him the gratitude of every veteran. It seems as if each time Bud Day thinks his career is completed, something else has arisen. In 2004, at the age of 79, Bud Day recognized John Kerry, as the young naval officer whom he saw spewing anti-American propaganda in a film shown in the Hanoi Hilton. Once more Bud Day had to act, and he joined with the coalition of veterans’ groups, led by the Swift Vets, who opposed Kerry’s candidacy. During this time, he also took issue with the politics of John McCain, even while maintaining their friendship and mutual respect. And though it happened too late for inclusion in Coram’s manuscript, Bud Day’s latest stance occurred when he stepped forward to give public endorsement to the Gathering Of Eagles rally, which took place in Washington on March 17.

Since his first aviation escape, Bud Day has believed that he has been preserved by God for some special task yet to come. As if any of several of his accomplishments might have seemed that special consuming task already. Perhaps Bud Day, like Roland and Arthur, will only go to secluded sleep to awake when he is needed again. Meanwhile, he is an inspiration for the rest of us. Robert Coram has written an excellent book about a triply extraordinary American. Whether you are a patriot, military historian, or simple aviation buff, do not miss this book.

-Rurik

Contributed by Bill Faith on May 18, 2007 at 12:56 AM in Books, George Mellinger, The American Warrior, US Air Force, US Army, US Marine Corps, Viet Nam | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBack

Sunday, 13 May 2007
 

Blockbuster news concerning....
Contributed by antimedia

....the Haditha case was revealed today by Bruce Kesler on his Democracy Project blog. During an Article 32 hearing (the military parallel to a grand jury) secret Marine intelligence reports revealed that one-third of the "innocent civilians" killed in Haditha by the Marines were identified as armed "insurgents" and that it's not even certain who killed the real civilians.

Eight of the 24 people whom Marines are accused of killing in Haditha, Iraq, were described yesterday as insurgents by a defense attorney and a Marine liaison officer during a pretrial hearing.

Randy Stone Defense attorney Charles Gittins said the eight were identified by human and electronic intelligence. They were not mentioned by name.

The eight were among five men ordered from a car and shot to death and four men killed in a home cleared by Marines of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, said Gittins, who is representing Capt. Randy Stone at a pretrial hearing at Camp Pendleton. Stone is charged with failing to investigate and properly report the killings.

Last week, Capt. Jeffrey Dinsmore, the intelligence officer for the battalion, testified that “it's fairly well established through the (unmanned aerial vehicle) coverage that there were insurgents in those homes,” referring to the homes where civilians were killed.

Lending support to those facts is the fact that the relatives of those dead were never compensated by the US.

Relatives of four men killed in a third house got no payment because those men were believed to be insurgents, Marine Maj. Dana Hyatt testified Saturday.

Hyatt also said no payments were made to relatives of the five men killed as they were held at gunpoint when they emerged from a car minutes after the bombing. No money went to their survivors because of a never-verified report that the car contained weapons indicating those men were insurgents.

Given the fact that we compensate the families of innocent victims in Iraq, it seems highly likely that the military has known for quite some time that these particular dead were not innocent civilians. It also seems highly likely that the military has known for quite some time that at least a third of the dead were combatants, and they were using the civilians as human shields and fodder for the international media circus.

Yet the case continues.

Crossposted at Media Lies

Tags: Haditha Marines innocent civilians

Contributed by antimedia on May 13, 2007 at 04:34 PM in The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Monday, 07 May 2007
 

With the advent of YouTube and podcasts....
Contributed by antimedia

....you don't even have to be there to enjoy the conference. This is a video of Robert Stokely speaking at the conference. Robert's son, Sgt. Mike Stokely, was killed in Iraq. Mr. Stokely speaks of his son with deep respect, grief and pride, unlike some others who have lost sons in Iraq.

I completely forgot to mention that you could have followed the conference live from your home. I won't make that mistake next year. While I'm in Washington at the conference, you'll be able to sit at home and watch the whole thing, ask questions and participate fully in the activities.

It's almost the same as being there.  (Hat tip to The Discerning Texan.)

Cross posted at Media Lies

Contributed by antimedia on May 7, 2007 at 09:23 PM in The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Sunday, 06 May 2007
 

What a crock of....
Contributed by antimedia

....pure, unadulterated crap!

The detailed mental health survey of troops in Iraq released by the Pentagon on Friday highlights a growing worry for the United States as it struggles to bring order to Baghdad: the high level of combat stress suffered during lengthy and repeated tours.

The fourth in a continuing series, the report suggested that extended tours and multiple deployments, among other policy decisions, could escalate anger and increase the likelihood that soldiers or marines lash out at civilians, or defy military ethics.

That is no small concern since the United States’ counterinsurgency doctrine emphasizes the importance of winning the trust and support of the local population.

The report was provided in November to Gen. George W. Casey, Jr., then the senior American commander in Iraq.

Pentagon officials have not explained why the public release of the report was delayed, a move that kept the data out of the public debate as the Bush administration developed its plan to build up troops in Iraq and extend combat tours. Rear Adm. Richard R. Jeffries, a medical officer, told reporters on Friday that the timing was decided by civilian Pentagon officials.

The survey of 1,320 soldiers and 447 marines was conducted in August and September of 2006. The military’s report, which drew on that survey as well as interviews with commanders and focus groups, found that longer deployments increased the risk of psychological problems; that the levels of mental problems was highest - some 30 percent - among troops involved in close combat; that more than a third of troops endorsed torture in certain situations; and that most would not turn in fellow service members for mistreating a civilian.

You'll notice they use weasel words like "could" and "might". Furthermore, until I read the report myself, I'm not taking these guys' word for it. The comment about hiding the report to slant the debate is a dead giveaway to their bias, as is their whiney complaint about the stress on our troops.

Did you know that, in WWII, our soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines and coasties served for the duration? There was no such thing as a rotation, tour extensions, overstretched military or any of the other bullcrap that the whiney pyscho docs wring their hands about all the time these days. They fought the enemy on the sea, on the beaches, in the forests and the towns and everywhere they found them until they were defeated. Then they came home.

Somehow the "Greatest Generation"™ managed to survive, come home, marry, raise families and have great careers in civilian life. Yet, supposedly, the poor guys who are serving now can't make it through twelve month tours, can't deal with the stress of combat without cracking up or going postal on civilians, can't handle multiple tours without falling apart in a blubbering puddle on the floor.

Give me a break! Our active duty military is the most dedicated, the highest educated and the most principled military force we have ever fielded. These guys are both tough and compassionate, lethal and loving, decisive and discerning. No one in the world is better at putting up with bullcrap and slogging on than our guys, and I am damn sick and tired of the constant infantilizing of our warriors. These are men, not boys. Volunteers not victims.

It's past time to tell the people that treat them like children to just shut up!  (Hat tip to CJ.)

Cross posted at Media Lies

Contributed by antimedia on May 6, 2007 at 11:20 PM in The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Wednesday, 02 May 2007
 

The END of Military Blogging?
Update: Russ Vaughn sample letter to your congresscritters
Contributed by Bill Faith

Army crack down on bloggers
Michelle Malkin

Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Via Noah Shachtman:

The U.S. Army has ordered soldiers to stop posting to blogs or sending personal e-mail messages, without first clearing the content with a superior officer, Wired News has learned. The directive, issued April 19, is the sharpest restriction on troops' online activities since the start of the Iraq war. And it could mean the end of military blogs, observers say.

Military officials have been wrestling for years with how to handle troops who publish blogs. Officers have weighed the need for wartime discretion against the opportunities for the public to personally connect with some of the most effective advocates for the operations in Afghanistan and Iraq -- the troops themselves. The secret-keepers have generally won the argument, and the once-permissive atmosphere has slowly grown more tightly regulated. Soldier-bloggers have dropped offline as a result.

The new rules (.pdf) obtained by Wired News require a commander be consulted before every blog update.

Bottom line from Matt at Blackfive: ...

As the saying goes, there's a right way, a wrong way, and the Army a wrong way. I can't improve on Blackfive's post so I won't try. Read it.

***

Ed Morrissey comments here.

***

I just received this sample letter from Russ Vaughn, which he and I both hope you'll modify as appropriate and send to your Congressional representatives:

Dear Senator/Congressman,

I have just become aware of the military’s new restrictive policy on soldier weblogs (milblogs) with the reason for this policy being given that it is in the interest of operational security. While I am all for the highest degree of vigilance in matters of OPSEC, I feel that the new policy is heavy-handed and counterproductive for the following reasons:

1)  Every website created by any service person is readily available for routine scrutiny by military monitoring agencies. At the first sign of misuse, the military has the capability to block the offending site and deal appropriately with its owner.

2)  Milblogs are the 21st Century’s letters home from the war, a means of communicating from the combat zone with family and friends that far exceeds the capabilities, in both time and content, of previous wars. They are a definite morale-builder, both with serving troops and the folks back home keeping tabs on their loved ones.

3)  Milblogs are tools for training and orientation from those who are there now to those who will be. Such exchanges can be highly beneficial for those deploying to combat for the first time. Such “pearls’ from the trigger-pullers to those yet untested can make the transition much easier and perhaps safer for the new warriors.

4)  Under such prohibition, only the dutiful soldiers will be affected. The disgruntled and disobedient will evade this restriction and find ways to use such internet podiums to spew their harsh criticisms. Only one view, that most favorable to the military, will be stifled.

5)  Last but not least, those affected by this restriction on freedom of speech are precisely those who are placing their lives on the line to preserve that very freedom. To deny them that right unnecessarily as is now being done with this new policy sends a very wrong message to the world about our true commitment to our Bill of Rights.

If a soldier wants to have a weblog, fine, let him or her do so after first signing a DoD agreement, making him keenly aware of the consequences of OPSEC violations and the and the penalties that attach to them. By signing that agreement he automatically registers with a central registry, maintained by a DoD agency with the responsibility to routinely monitor content of all milblogs owned by active duty personnel.

I’m not asking for official action here, simply a heads-up call from your office to your connections in the Pentagon to suggest they not throw out the baby with the bath water.

Sincerely,

Russ Vaughn
101^st Airborne Division, Vietnam 65-66
Registered Voter in Your State/District

***

Michelle has a great link-rich follow-up to her earlier post here.  (Thanks for the link, Michelle.)

Contributed by Bill Faith on May 2, 2007 at 02:16 PM in Caring about our troops, The American Warrior, US Army | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Saturday, 28 April 2007
 

Two Birthdays
Contributed by Bill Faith

[Written by Arch Arthur, Maj., USAF (Ret) at the webmaster's request.]

Arch Arthur is a member of a small group of people who have two birthdays each year - one natural and the other miraculous.  His natural birthday was February 4th, 1944 in Birmingham, Alabama. That life should have ended over North Vietnam at 0645, April 28th, 1972 when a Soviet SA-2 tore through the belly of his F4E.  Here is what happened 35 years ago today.

In 1971-72, Captain Arthur was a weapon systems officer (WSO) in the 366 Tactical Fighter Wing assigned to a special unit called, “Stormy” whose job it was to locate targets and lead strike flights in heavily defended areas. Mission profile: single ship, fly to the assigned area, perform 20 minutes of armed visual reconnaissance, rendezvous with strikers, mark a target, control the strike, assess bomb damage, hit the tanker and do it over two or three times per sortie. 

In April of 1972, the situation in South Vietnam was grave.  North Vietnamese launched an offensive to coincide with the monsoon season.   They attacked Quang Tri Province from Laos and across the DMZ.  Other units followed up with attacks on Kontoum and Pleiku.  Unlike Tet, these attacks used massed armor and long-range artillery.  Weather precluded close air support.   Outnumbered and outgunned, the South Vietnamese fought courageously but fell back.  Each time they tried to mount a defense, NVA gunners smashed them. 

On the 28th, Captain Arthur was scheduled for the dawn patrol in the back seat of Stormy 01.   We’ll call the pilot, “John” (not his real name).  The US Commander of I Corps called John and told him, “You have got to find and kill those 130 MM guns.”  Everyone knew that Hue was under siege and DaNang would be next.

Weather forecast: 1000’ overcast, 3 miles with light rain.  Arch called and had special low altitude munitions loaded on their assigned strike flights.  As they suited up, John pointed to Arch’s “Stormy” patch and said, “I wouldn’t wear that today.”  The clear implication was that this may be a one-way mission.  Without speaking, they walked down the bravo ramp in a light rain to F4E 68 0308.  At 0600, Stormy 01 lifted off Runway 36R into the clouds.

Things began to unravel early.  Descending over Quang Tri City, they broke out at 15,000’.  They were a relieved to be able to work in visual conditions but, their strike flights had the wrong munitions.  What they saw below them was horrific.  QL-1, the coastal highway, resembled a stream of ants.  The road was jammed with people, vehicles, livestock, carts and bicycles.  Occasionally, they could see explosions.  Fires burned everywhere. 

Stormy 01 flew out Route 9 toward the Laotian border, looking for artillery and armor.  They flew an erratic path at 450 knots, 4 Gs and remained above 4,000’ to avoid small arms and light anti-aircraft fire. The roads were wet deeply rutted, but they could find neither 130 MM guns nor tanks.  Working toward the DMZ, there was no trace of the enemy until they surveyed the DMZ road south of the old USMC firebase at Con Thien.

Parked within its perimeter were five tracked vehicles with twin 57 MM guns firing at them.  They recognized the ZSU-57-2 by its muzzle flash – a 25’ long tongue of flame which looks more lethal than it is.  With a low cyclic rate of fire, lack of radar and visible projectiles, 57 MM was easy to avoid.  Arch marked the location on the inertial. John and Arch asked themselves same question, “What‘s up there that they don’t want us to see?”

Stormy 01 proceeded to the east and circled back for a second pass was at 50’ and 500 knots, several hundred yards south of the guns.  In the center of the battery was a dozer trench containing a van.  The third pass, right over the trench revealed a Surface to Air Missile (SAM) radar van.  The NVA were trying to set up a SAM site in the DMZ.  This new site extended coverage miles into South Vietnam. The ZSU-57-2s continued to fire.

John called the strike flight with rendezvous instructions and Arch prepared a target brief.  They discussed the threat the guns might pose to strike aircraft, deciding to drop two cluster bombs (CBU-52s) on the guns.  One problem in Stormy was task saturation.  Both crewmembers were very busy that checklists were sometimes overlooked.  One first CBU pass, John rolled into a 45° dive and tracked the target to 5,000’.  When he released he said, “Shit!”  He had forgotten to arm the weapon and the clamshell never opened, detonating low order beyond the target.  It was Arch’s responsibility to read the checklist. 

Pass number 5 was the last opportunity to suppress the defenses.  John was slightly shallow and had to press to 4500’.  Before the radar fuse armed, it was below fuse function altitude the last CBU did not open either, hitting the same hole.  A pity, either pass would have killed the AAA.  Fuel state was becoming a problem.

John called the strike flight and asked how far they were from the target.  They

Strike lead expressed confusion and John told them bluntly to get to the DMZ without delay or Stormy would be out of gas.  At that point, Stormy 01 had their first tracking indications from an SA-2 site in North Vietnam.   

The fast FAC set up to mark from the south, pulling off to the east – toward the water.  As they rolled in SA-2 site at Bat Lake lit them up. John marked the target and came off low.  In response to classic indications of an SA-2 launch, Arch employed appropriate electronic countermeasures.  At about 1500’ they descended below a temperature inversion that trapped smoke below it and severely restricted horizontal visibility.  Passing a certain altitude, SA-2 indications disappeared as they expected. The strike flight was not yet in position to attack or even see Stormy 01’s mark. 

On the 7th pass, John told the strike flight that this would be his, “Last pass,” since he was, “no shit bingo!” Stormy  received the same SA-2 indications as they had on their 6th pass, John performed the same evasive maneuver and Arch employed the same countermeasures.  Again the radar warning ceased at the expected altitude, but this time the NVA launched three SA-2s missiles  passing well above and behind the FAC.  Although the missile site was at their 4 o’clock, both Stormy crewmen were looking at 8 o’clock to see if their the strikers were the targets.   It was a clever ruse and it worked.   Those missiles were not being guided at all. 

Arch knew something was wrong with the warning indications.  There was a light on that should not have been.  As he looked at the panel there was a sudden impact that lifted the aircraft’s tail.  In his center mirror, he watched the rotating beacon disappear in the fireball.  Looking north, he saw a second SA-2 a few hundred meters away pulling lead.  The missile entered pitch oscillation and passed in front of and below the aircraft and detonated.  The NVA weren’t using radar; it had to have been a visual shot.

Startled by the second missile, John asked, “What was that?”

“An SA-2,” Arch answered and noting some 12.7 MM rounds passing his canopy added, “take it down, we’re getting hosed!”

“We’re at 50 feet,” replied the pilot, “and I’ve got a fire light on the left engine.”

“Fuck it!” Arch replied, “We’re in North Vietnam!”

Stormy 01 crossed the beach at 50’ doing 600 knots with both engines in full afterburner. As they turned south toward DaNang, they began to deal with their emergency.  John tried to retard the left throttle but it would not move.  Fire in the left engine bay had moved forward to the fuel control about 5’ behind Arch’s ejection seat, wielding the flex cable.

John switched off the Left Master Switch closing the left engine fuel valve.  Before the switch closed, the right engine fire light illuminated, followed by a “Check Hydraulic Gauges” light.  PC1 and PC2 dropped to zero, leaving Stormy 01 traveling at 600 knots (150 knots above survivable ejection airspeed) with both engines stuck in full A/B and no flight controls. When power control systems fail, the leading edge of the stabilator drives down causing the nose to pitch up.  John and Arch became cargo. 

This instant is when life one was ended.  One of two scenarios would occur:

1. The aircraft would disintegrate - fuselage breaking into tail section, engine compartment and cockpit and the wings separating as the aerodynamic forces tore them apart. John’s parents and Arch’s wife would have seen the three officers – a chaplin, a doctor and an aviator. Or,

2. The damaged airframe would withstand the G-forces and climb, slowing to a survivable ejection velocity and giving John and Arch a chance to jump and be rescued.  At DaNang, the drinking lamp would be lit, and they would live to fight another day.

The F4 is a large, rugged piece of military machinery designed by some very smart engineers. It held together.  At 600 knots, it climbs rapidly, slowing the aircraft and carrying the crew away from the planet. 

While John was handling a rapid series of aircraft problems, Arch was in the rear cockpit working through his own emergencies.  When the utility hydraulics failed, the radar antenna drive died.  Arch, the consummate air-to-air radar operator, switched his radar off to avoid damage.  Training is a wonderful thing.

Passing the vertical at 450 knots, John realized that ejection was survivable and they would never be farther from the enemy.  “Eject!” he told his WSO.

“What?” replied the back seater.

“Eject, eject, eject!” John repeated. 

Arch heard the first of the three confirmations, assumed the position, closed his eyes and pulled the lower handle.  The rear canopy came off as the rear seat shoulder harness locked then the rocket motor fired.  G onset in a rocket seat is smooth compared to the ballistic seats used in training.  1.4 seconds later, his main parachute opened.  Arch recommends rolling up one’s collar to avoid rope burn from risers.

John saw the rear seat fire and reached for his lower D ring.  When he pulled it, he expected his seat to fire instantly, but nothing happened.  A 1.6 second delay on the front seat applies even if the rear seat is gone.  John moved his head to look down.  At that instant, his seat fired compressing his vertebrae and causing considerable pain.  Unlike his WSO, John had completed airborne training.  In his judgment, opening shock at 450 knots was severe. 

Arch looked up and counted his 28 risers, released the 4 rear risers to enable steering then looked down.  His toes were over the South China Sea, but heels were over the beach, a beach owned by the North Vietnamese.  When he looked at John several hundred feet above, he saw that his raft and survival kit were deployed.  He deployed his kit and inflated his life preservers.   Their aircraft had continued to climb until it ran out of airspeed and started down, passing fairly close to its former crew.  About 60’ of flames streamed from its belly, aux air doors and rear fuselage.  It hit the water at 90° in the mouth of a river.  Everything was quiet. 

Below them a pair of search and rescue aircraft - A1Es callsign, “Sandy 21” had seen the F4E impact and began a climbing circle around the crash site.  Arch prepared for his water landing, rechecking his gear and thinking through all the procedures he’d been taught and practiced. He worked clear of his canopy and slid onto his raft.  As he cut himself loose from the risers, he heard the first shell explode. John and Arch were about 1000 meters off the beach. The NVA had them in sight and were trying to kill the two wounded survivors with mortars and artillery. 

When the Jolly arrived 30 minutes later, the mortar fire increased in accuracy and intensity.  They put a PJ in the water to help John on the penetrator, then he swam over to help Arch.  Being hoisted aboard the HH53, they could hear the distinctive crack of 12.7 MM heavy machine gun fire.  The SAR forces ignored the ground fire and did their job. 

They also gave each survivor the traditional bottle of Champagne, which they drank immediately (at 0700 local).  Back at DaNang, the flight surgeon came aboard to see if he could participate in the party that was building.  To cut the “chill” of these wet aviators, he provided a bottle of cognac, which Arch and John split. 

Intelligence debrief was a bit more contentious.  The intelligence officer insisted, “Stormy 01 was hit by an unguided rocket”. 

Arch knew better.  “Unguided rockets” he noted, “do not pull lead.”  These were SA-2 Guideline missiles that both men had seen many times before.  Something was wrong.

Arch discovered the Intel problem on his way to Bangkok later that week.  At the O-Club at Tan Son Nut AB, he met a 7th AF Intel Captain who told him that they had discovered the visual tracker at the SA-2 site at Bat Lake about a week earlier.

“Why didn’t you get the word out?” Arch asked him.

“Captain, you didn’t have a need to know,” the Captain replied.

Arch’s response was swift and non-verbal.  Officers at a nearby table were able to take Arch’s crutches away from him before he killed the Intelligence puke.

Contributed by Bill Faith on April 28, 2007 at 02:26 PM in Arch Arthur, The American Warrior, US Air Force, Viet Nam | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Some pictures to accompany "Two Birthdays"
Contributed by Bill Faith

I'm posting some pictures associated with the above post separately so those of you on dial-up have the option of reading the post without spending several seconds downloading the pics. (This post is predated to keep it below the other one. It's actually a little after 4:00 as I'm typing this.)

Arch sent this one separately in a mail titled "Real heroes pictured below":

Contributed by Bill Faith on April 28, 2007 at 02:24 PM in Arch Arthur, The American Warrior, US Air Force, Viet Nam | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Thursday, 19 April 2007
 

Heroism at Virginia Tech (Updated and bumped)
Contributed by 72nd TCS

James Taranto, writing in Best of the Web for the WSJ's Opinion Journal of April 17, tells a gripping story of heroism at Virginia Tech. The story relates how a Rumanian-born Holocaust survivor interposed his body between the shooter and his students, giving the students time to escape out the windows.  Let him tell it:

He Died Saving His Class
By James Taranto

For those of us whose job it is to have opinions, an event like yesterday's massacre at Virginia Tech is a bigger challenge than, say, a terrorist attack. The murder of 32 people by South Korea native Cho Seung-hui is no less evil than massacres carried out by suicide bombers or hijackers, but it is harder to comprehend. Terrorism is carried out by an organized enemy with a political agenda; we can rally to defeat the enemy. The Virginia Tech shooter seems to have been a lone nut. He murdered all those people only to render his own life a nullity by committing suicide in the end.

So let's just note one act of heroism amid the horror, as reported by the Jerusalem Post:

Professor Liviu Librescu, 76, threw himself in front of the shooter when the [murderer] attempted to enter his classroom. The Israeli mechanics and engineering lecturer was shot to death, "but all the students lived--because of him," Virginia Tech student Asael Arad--also an Israeli--told Army Radio.

Several of Librescu's other students sent e-mails to his wife, Marlena, telling of how he had blocked the gunman's way and saved their lives, said Librescu's son, Joe.

"My father blocked the doorway with his body and asked the students to flee," Joe Librescu said in a telephone interview from his home outside of Tel Aviv. "Students started opening windows and jumping out."

Librescu was a Holocaust survivor who escaped communist Romania for Israel in 1978 and moved to Virginia in 1986. By coincidence, he was murdered on Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Some coincidence.  Professor Librescu's exploit--though deserving of the highest civilian honor at the disposal of President Bush [time will tell if he is cognizant]--failed to attract the attention of The New York Times. He is barely mentioned here [third paragraph from the bottom] as one of the two faculty victims named:

Some of the professors who were killed were named. Among them were Prof. Liviu Librescu, a Romanian Israeli who has lived in the United States for several years, and Dr. G.V. Loknathan, who was originally from India and became an American citizen after arriving in the United States in 1977.

It is not as if Professor Librescu was some academic mediocrity. He was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and had enjoyed international repute for his contributions to aeronautical engineering. In the welter of calls for "healing," not to mention the predictable yawps about gun control, it is heartening to learn of the heroism of this man.  Doubtless there were other heroes of that awful day, equally consigned to media indifference.  CBS, at least, gave us his photo.

Add his name to your list of unsung heroes.

Urge the White House to award him the national honors he deserves.

***

Webmaster's addendum, 2007.04:19:

To honor Professor Liviu Librescu
Michelle Malkin

Here's a petition to memorialize VTech hero, Dr. Liviu Librescu, by renaming Norris Hall in his honor. ...

Contributed by 72nd TCS on April 19, 2007 at 01:51 PM in Current Affairs, John "72nd TCS" Werntz, The American Warrior | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Wednesday, 18 April 2007
 

65 Years Ago Today
Contributed by Bill Faith

Video: Doolittle’s Raid
Bryan Preston

On April 18, 1942, James Doolittle led a daring raid over Tokyo. Wikipedia describes it thus:

The Doolittle Raid of April 18, 1942, was the first air raid by the United States to strike the Japanese home islands during World War II. The mission was notable in that it was the only operation in which United States Army Air Forces bombers were launched from a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier. It was the longest combat mission ever flown by the B-25 Mitchell medium bomber. The Doolittle Raid demonstrated that the Japanese home islands were vulnerable to Allied air attack and it provided an expedient outlet for U.S. retaliation for Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

The raid was planned and led by Lieutenant Colonel Jimmy Doolittle, already a famous civilian aviator and aeronautical engineer before the war. The raid, however, had its roots in the mind of Navy Captain Francis Low, who early in the war predicted that, under the right conditions, twin-engined Army bombers could be successfully launched from an aircraft carrier. Subsequent calculations by Doolittle indicated that the B-25 Mitchell could be launched from a carrier with a reasonable bomb load, hit military targets in Japan, and fly on to land in China.

Michelle and I interviewed some of the surviving raiders and sailors who helped get the mission airborne on Veterans Day last year. ...

Watch the video here.

Contributed by Bill Faith on April 18, 2007 at 02:24 PM in The American Warrior, US Air Force, US Army, US Navy, WW II | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack