Iwo Jima: 65th Anniversary

Missed this on Friday and shame on me for letting the 65th anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima slip past. The month long battle saw some of the worst fighting of WWII. The Japanese on the island were an intractable foe. Of the 22,786 Japanese soldiers entrenched on the island, 21,570 died fighting or by ritual suicide. For most Americans the battle is symbolized by the Joe Rosenthal photograph taken on February 23, 1945. It depicts five United States Marines and a U.S. Navy corpsman raising the flag of the United States on Mount Suribachi. We owe the Greatest Generation of Americans a debt to large to repay: today take a moment and remember the soldiers who died on small island and thank them for the liberty you enjoy every day.

WNC Iwo Jima Veteran Wants Youths To Understand The True Meaning Of Casualties Of War

Edward Lannigan has a box full of medals that testify to his heroic service in the Pacific Theater during World War II, including his presence at Iwo Jima, the bloodiest battle in the history of the U.S. Marine Corps. The battle began 65 years ago this weekend.

In Lannigan's box are two Purple Hearts, a Silver Medal, two presidential citations and other awards attached to fading ribbons, small but poignant recognition of the bravery of a young man — a boy, really — who would return home from war with shrapnel in his skull and only one functional arm and hand.

But the medals are not on display. They live inside the box in a dark corner of the bottom drawer of the desk in his study.

There are many veterans who proudly showcase their war-related decorations. Lannigan is not one of them.

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U.S. History, December 25, 1776: Washington Crosses The Delaware

In 1776 General George Washington made a bold move: a surprise attack against the Hessian forces in Trenton, New Jersey. It was a success and marked a major victory over the British Empire by the upstart Continental rabble. It was also the first in a series of ass-kickings we've delivered to the Germans. Yay us!

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How Did We Let Our Culture Slip This Far? Are We Too Weak To Save Ourselves Now?

Diana West - Diversity Uber Alles

As Gen. Casey blatantly underscored it yesterday on Meet the Press: "Our diversity, not only in our Army, but in our country, is a strength. And as horrific as this tragedy was, if our diversity becomes a casualty, I think that’s worse." The end of "diversity" as a fetish object is "worse" than the massacre at Ft. Hood? Think about it. The general in charge of the Army is saying that if we, as a people, stop worshipping diversity above all and start protecting our soldiers and ourselves from the teachings and goals of Islam,that's "worse" than the carnage at Ft. Hood. Fire Gen. Casey. His duty is to diversity, not his troops.

How Did We Let Our Culture Slip This Far? Are We Too Weak Now To Save Ourselves?

No people in history have ever survived, who thought they could protect their freedom by making themselves inoffensive to their enemies. ~ Dean Acheson

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The 11th Hour Of The 11th Day Of The 11th Month

In Flanders fields, the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below…

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields…

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands, we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields…

~ Lt.-Col. John McCrae (1872-1918)

I have a feeling that these days there's not much slumber in Flander's fields.

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Semper Fi Boys & Girls! And Thank You!

Happy birthday to the USMC

Here's health to you and to our Corps
Which we are proud to serve;
In many a strife we've fought for life
And never lost our nerve;
If the Army and the Navy
Ever look on Heaven’s scenes;
They will find the streets are guarded
By United States Marines.

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D-Day: 65 Years Later

We live free because of these men. Because of their sacrifice we've never known a day, a minute, a second of true oppression or tyranny. They knew they were going to die and deemed the price worthwhile. It's a debt that cannot be repaid.

President Salutes Veterans Of D-Day

One of the president's honored guests – Jim Norene, a member of the 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne – didn't make it.

"Last night, after visiting this cemetery for one last time, he passed away in his sleep," Obama told a solemn crowd of vets stretching farther than most eyes can see. "Jim was gravely ill when he left his home, and he knew that he might not return. But just as he did sixty-five years ago, he came anyway. May he now rest in peace with the boys he once bled with, and may his family always find solace in the heroism he showed here." [...]

"In the face of a merciless assault from these cliffs, you could have idled the boats offshore," Obama said. "Amid a barrage of tracer bullets that lit the night sky, you could have stayed in those planes. You could have hid in the hedgerows or waited behind the sea wall.

"At an hour of maximum danger, amid the bleakest of circumstances, men who thought themselves ordinary found it within themselves to do the extraordinary. They fought for their moms and sweethearts back home, for the fellow warriors they came to know as brothers. And they fought out of a simple sense of duty – a duty sustained by the same ideals for which their countrymen had fought and bled for over two centuries."

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Happy Memorial Day!

Thank you to everyone who's helped to keep this nation safe and free.

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3 Dead Somali Pirates... An Excellent Start...

Navy Seals Kill Pirates, Rescue American Hostage

Navy Seals launched a rescue attempt that ended when snipers killed three pirates in three shots, all direct hits to the head.

The SEALS rock!

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What Ever Happened To Summary Execution During War Time?

FOXNews.com - Former Navy Sailor Gets 10 Years for Leaking Details of Ship Movements in Terror Case

A former Navy sailor convicted of leaking details about ship movements and the best ways to attack them was sentenced Friday to the maximum 10 years in prison.

U.S. District Judge Mark Kravitz said Hassan Abu-Jihaad, of Phoenix, betrayed his country and endangered his fellow sailors.

"I cannot really overstate the seriousness of this crime," Kravitz said.

The leak "does constitute a fundamental betrayal of your country and of your oath. You endangered your colleagues, you endangered your vessel and other vessels and other sailors, and you endangered your country."

Only 10 years in prison? I thought we could still execute people for treason?

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Just Do It!

New Israeli PM Netanyahu wastes little time: Warns USA must end Iran's nuke drive, or Israel may attack...

Dear Prime Minister Netanyahu, please stop waiting on the U.S. to do anything. It ain't gonna happen. Just go and do what needs to be done. While you're at it, see if you can do something about the missile in North Korea too. It's just sitting there begging to be destroyed...

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