The Debt Can Never Be Repaid

Throughout American history some very special people do this:

And go through this:

And get ordered to here:

Or here:

Or here:

Or here:

So that people like this:

And this:

And this:

And this:


Can speak freely.

 Some gave some:

Some gave all:

So that this:

Remains free.

Some appreciate it:

Some don't:

But still we do it because freedom isn't free and you have the right to say what you wish because of people like us veterans. The freedom you share with your family, friends and other Americans was secured by brave men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice to protect a nation and a belief that freedom to choose ones leaders and pursue ones goals is a God-given right that is sacred and must be protected.

Say a prayer for those who fought and died to secure your freedom over the last 250-years. That's not asking too much, is it? American freedom was secured by the blood of patriots in places like Trenton and Cowpens, kept free in places like Gettysburg and Antietam and further protected in places like Bastogne, Okinawa, Hanoi, Mogadishu, Fallujah and Tora-Bora.

We ask nothing but that you remember and as a son and brother of a veteran and being one myself I see it as little sacrifice on your part to take five minutes to reflect on what so many great men and women have given to protect you and you loved ones.

So please give to organizations like this:

Or this:

 God Bless America:

Rest in Peace Lance Corporal Jeremy Kane

Jeremy Kane lived one town away from me. I never met him but I feel like I knew him. Jeremy Kane is no longer with us but he is one of my heroes:

At 13, Jeremy Kane was deeply affected by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001. The event shaped his life, and led him to a fateful choice.

"He knew he had to do something for his country, and that was join the military," said his mother, Melinda, of Cherry Hill. "He wanted to serve."

To drive home the point, Kane joined the Marine Corps on Sept. 11, 2006, during his freshman year at Rutgers University and served as a reservist.

On Saturday, three months into his deployment in Afghanistan, the 22-year-old lance corporal was killed when a suicide bomber attacked his unit in Helmand Province.

This hits home because my own son is 13. What if 9/11 had occurred today and he had to experience the tension, horror and disbelief we all did that day? Jeremy Kane was affected and that affectation lasted to the point where he joined the Marines. He didn't have to, he wanted to because he thought it was the right thing to do for his country. I did the same and can understand what he felt.

Mr. Kane's father was a pathologist and he went to a good high school and college. He could've have let someone else join and could have rationalized it a million different ways. He chose not to let someone else fight but to do it himself.

I leave you with the words of his mother:

"I want people to know that this was someone from Cherry Hill," she said. "He had options, and this was his choice.

And thank God for people like him. Yes, he's one of thousands who have pay the ultimate price to defend our freedom and they are all heroes. Mr. Kane knew the risks and enlisted anyway because he's a true American who knew what this nation is about and it's about people like him defending people who don't.

Thank you Lance Corporal Kane and Semper Fi.

Semper Fi, Brother

"I kept my oath, do you intend to keep yours?"

Marines in "Hell of a Fight" in Afghanistan

4,000 Marines are taking it to the Taliban in Helmand Province and are expected to have a tough go. Obama--and by extension the media--haven't talked at all about the war against the Taliban and the fight to wrest control of areas causing problems because they have more important issues to cover like Michael Jackson and faux town hall meetings.

Anyway, our warriors are taking it to the radical Islamic groups in what could be a critical battle. Here's the gist from AFP:

GARMSIR, Afghanistan (AFP) — US Marines are in a "hell of a fight" as they storm into Taliban strongholds in a major assault in Afghanistan, their commanding officer said on Friday.

Nearly 4,000 Marines launched the operation Thursday in parts of the southern province of Helmand, suffering their first fatality in a pivotal test of President Barack Obama's aggressive new strategy against the Taliban.

The 1/5 Infantry Battalion met only light resistance in their push south and had already been able to meet locals at shuras (councils), Brigadier General Larry Nicholson said, speaking to a convoy with which AFP was travelling.

But "for 2/8 there is a hell of a fight going on in the southern quarter of the sector," the top Marine said on arrival at Garmsir, a town along the Helmand River that was a key objective for the offensive.

"2/8 are going to face some challenges," he said. The Marines were in an area called Toshtay about 25 kilometres (16 miles) south of Garmsir.

This is a crucial area as the Taliban (and Iran?) are running weapons through the Pakistan border into the province. It's proximity to Quetta makes it a hard slog but it should be a target rich environment. Progress seems to be good:

Nicholson later told AFP separately: "Garmsir is three-quarters quiet but there is fighting in Toshtay. We intend to clear that up today. This doesn't mean it is over. The enemy may be reassessing the situation."

On the launch of Operation Khanjar before dawn on Thursday, Nicholson told his group that 4,000 Marines had been inserted in nearly eight hours, about half of them by helicopter.

Helmand Governor Gulab Mangal was "giggling with excitement" at the progress, Nicholson said. "I know the governor and I have never seen him like this."

No word on the name or rank of the Marine who was KIA. My prayers go out to his family and for him I can only say thanks for giving everything in the pursuit of freedom for the oppressed. No word on the soldier captured yesterday either.

Google map of the area here. AFP map of the operation below:

Update: The word is they are not meeting as much resistance as they thought they would. Good news.

Hypocrisy Writ Large: Anti-Military Lefties Now Pro-Military Lefties

If W had ordered the military to cut down the pirates, the commies liberals would be freaking out yelling that we'll only encourage more violence and other trademark canards. But now that it's been ordered by The One, they just love those guys and gals in camouflage:

Obama signed the order giving the Navy the go-ahead to take these people out when they had the opportunity in February.

But the mighty armchair generals of the right will never acknowledge this, of course.

Amazing; all it takes is a highly trained military to pull your hero's stones out of the fire and all of a sudden he's friggin' Patton. Weren't the guys who executed this plan the same ones you so easily called murderers not too long ago? Remember Haditha and remember that they were exonerated but you didn't apologize? Now they're good because the order was given by Obama but had to be executed by them. As a vet I can only say you're pathetic scum who wouldn't raise a finger to assist the military when they needed it. You hailed your lib leaders when they spit on our men and women in uniform. You even went so far as to support those who were killing my fellow vets.

Crooks and Liars was all over the military for every accusation no matter how insane or ridiculous. John Amato wanted us to be guilty because it fit his preconceived notion of the military and those who serve their country. Worse, he believed and reprinted every single accusation and judged our Marines guilty before they even had their cases heard. They, of all blogs, should be the last to praise our military for anything. They lost that right with posts like this, this, this, this, this.... Fuck you with a dirty stick, Amato, us vets won't stand for the hypocrisy.

A few points to remember here my lefty friends, these guys were trained in a military that was restructured under Donald Rumsfeld that allowed great men like David Petraeus to move up and lead. Also, the president is cutting strategic parts of the military in the midst of two wars and the men who were so finely trained under Bush won't be available to bail out BHO next time.

Anti-war Scumbags Deface Marine Recruiting Center

Guess where? Wait for it...Berkeley. Shocking, I know.

Zombie has the pix but this one of the Code Pinkos stuck out:

Maybe I'm missing something but didn't the racist, fascist, pro war and very Republican George W. Bush leave office over two-months ago? Maybe that news hasn't quite filtered down to Berkeley yet, what with the newspapers shrinking daily.

The Marines will fix the damage of course and will continue doing what they are doing because they are Marines. I mean, hell, if they can beat the anti-American elements in Fallujah and Baghdad, they can beat them in northern California.

The Military Budget Cuts Update

Update: See this post for an update. This may be false.

OK, we've established a few facts; first the Obama administration is cutting billions from the Pentagon's budget while we have an active war going on and another that is starting to draw down but could flare up at any point. That has never happened before whereby a president cut the budget while our troops were actively engaged in a hot war. Second, the media isn't covering it at all and the Obama administration shamefully and cowardly released the info on a Friday knowing that if the media did cover it at all, no one would be paying attention.

The question now is where to make the cuts. Smadanek has a breakdown of how it would affect the Navy and it ain't pretty. His supposition that it would fall to all the branches equally is a good one.

I mentioned earlier that you can essentially kiss missile defense goodbye just just as we approaching deployment. Obama will push for that as a sop to Putin. That leaves several other huge programs that will be stopped or get seriously whacked including the Joint Strike Fighter--the next generation of aircraft designed to take us well into this century. Ditto the F 22 Raptor.
These are two programs that would ensure military supremacy for the next thirty years--years in which we'll have to deal with a rebuilding Russia and an upstart China.

Still, even reducing or eliminating those programs won't reduce the budget to where Obama wants it so that leaves deficiencies at the deck-plate level--affecting the average airman, sailor, soldier or Marine. Reduced weapons capability means more dead and wounded troops and that's a kick in the balls to the good people who signed on over the last few years and now are being told that the new president doesn't think you need the latest and greatest.

It's up to you and me to make this a major issue; write your congressman and/or senator and tell them that you will abide this. Write your local paper and get the word out that Obama is willing to shortchange our military men and women while throwing money to anti-war groups posing as "neighborhood stabilization" outfits. Tell your friends that Obama thinks giving money to the National Endowment for the Arts is more important than keeping our country safe. Be professional when writing to these people but be be blunt in letting them know that those men and women who took the oath to protect our country entered into a deal with the government and part of that deal was to provide them the best equipment possible.

This vet is mighty pissed by this.

Contact info:

Congress

Find any newspaper in the country by clicking here.

Victory in Iraq

It's time. It's well past time in fact to declare our victory in Iraq.

I've joined with Z-man and many others to give our boys and girls what they earned: the joy of a hard fought victory.

In years past, the bar for victory was the capture of the capital city of the nation you invaded. The citizens well-being was secondary and the continuing viability of said city was what the victors deemed useful. That has changed for the better thanks to our efforts in Iraq.

We invaded Iraq in the the spring of 2003 and President George W. Bush made it clear that this was the premier battle in the greater War on Terror. We took the capital in record time led by a military force so awesome that any resistance melted in front of our troops due to overwhelming force and the sheer will of our men and women who enlisted for just such a battle. Al-Qaeda saw it that way and sent every recruit they could into Baghdad and provinces north and south to defeat us.

Things went awry and bad decisions were made and we were caught in a situation that was alien to us. Soldiers and Marines died in a Peace-keeping mission that was not supposed to be as it was playing out. Support waned and good men and women died and each death was played up by the media as another example of us losing in Bush's Folly. The media and liberals were giddy when the death count reached 1,000 dead, then 2,000 dead...it was a dark time indeed. Of course the media never put it into the context of the battle for Iwo Jima, which resulted in 6,800 deaths in two months. That was a good war in the eyes of our new correspondents.

Then something incredible happened, some of those who supported the liberation of an oppressed people got cold feet. They became pussies at the exact moment when the nation needed strength. They surrendered, an unthinkable American concept. They said "we can't win" and the war became a political issue. The election in 2004 saw a battle in itself, a battle between a vet who sought his first political edge in blaming our troops for unsubstantiated atrocities and then made what most would acknowledge were incredibly inane comments, which our troops responded to quite forcefully. Kerry wanted Vietnam while America didn't.

Things were quite bleak and it was time for a change in approach. Enter Senator John McCain who called for what became known as "The Surge"--a build-up of forces to combat the insurgency that had developed and was led by al-Qaeda. It took incredible political guts to call for this but it was voted upon and yet it was thusly approved.

Unbelievably it worked and it worked with astonishing speed. A man named Petraeus created a strategy that will be studied for generations; a strategy that incorporated public relations, extreme force, community organizing on a scale that Barack Obama would have shied away from and downright intelligence. He attacked al-Qaeda where they had established strongholds by using their actions against them. The Iraqi's looked at the treatment they received at the hands of the insurgents and decided that American troops--troops accused by a sitting US Representative of murder--were better than their fellow Muslims. Astounding.

Now we've reached the end of the war. Things are clearly settled and al-Qaeda decided that Iraq was not quite the welcome place they'd hoped thanks to US ingenuity and a good old fashioned ass-kicking applied by our troops.

It's time. It's time to say that yes, we have won. Liberals and anti-warriors will say that we have troops there so it can't be over as they secretly curse that it should have been another Vietnam so we wouldn't soon take such action again. Even worse, George W. Bush joins the short list of Presidents who've won a major war. Washington, Lincoln, FDR/Truman, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. That's it.

Congratulations to those who've fought this battle and to their families who've suffered. To those who've died I owe my deepest gratitude but they did it in the cause of victory and they join the pantheon of heroes who won wars that preceded this one. To those who played different but highly significant roles, we all owe you our gratitude.

Job well done to all and Bravo Zulu.

Happy Veterans Day

As a vet, I find this day to be a solemn yet special one. In the last eight years, we've seen many of our friends, husbands, brothers and sisters die fighting for our security and our freedom. They have not died in vain.

We vets don't ask for much more than a simple thank you and a hearty handshake, so, if you know a vet, call them and wish them a good day and tell them of your gratitude for their service.

Happy Birthday Jarheads

I figured I'd write something nice about the Marines but couldn't do it, plus they'd have trouble reading it if it weren't written in crayon.


This sailor says happy b-day.

Tuesday Afternoon News

On this sleety, cold day--the first fireplace day of the year--I bring you the latest buzz from around the Internet:

Vets for Freedom takes it to Murtha who is in a real battle for his Congressional seat. It doesn't pay to accuse US Marines of murder, Congressman.

The Dems are stacking the deck in Ohio. Cheating comes quite naturally to them. Felons, the homeless, the deceased and finally people who don't exist at all are all pulling for Obama.

Rep. Barney Frank is gearing up to spend your money with reckless abandon. perhaps he'll even legalize prostitution clubs in his apartment so he doesn't have to deal with that unfortunate illegality again.

Some of the media have retained their respectability.

When your little-watched news channel gets ridiculed by both Hollywood libs and conservatives, it may be time to hang it up. love the rip at Olbermann.

All links from the great Lucianne.com including this editorial cartoon:

News and Notes For Thursday

It's feeling like fall is coming here in the great state of New Jersey. A beautiful time of year except it means winter is coming as well.

Here's some news from around the web:

-Babalu finds more communist craziness at the official website of The Messiah BH Obama. H/T: LGF.

-Pakistan figures they'd rather battle us than the Taliban/al-Qaeda. Probably not such a wise choice.

-My favorite story of the day concerns the worst congressman:

One of the Marines cleared in the killings of Iraqi civilians in the town of Haditha plans to sue his congressman today for statements he says defamed him and other members of his squad.

Former Marine Lance Cpl. Justin Sharratt, 24, of Canonsburg, will file a civil lawsuit against U.S. Rep. John P. Murtha, D-Johnstown, who was widely quoted two years ago saying that eight Marines carried out a cold-blooded killing of 24 civilians in the Iraqi town on Nov. 19, 2005.

Charges were later dropped against all but one of the Marines, with a military prosecutor calling allegations against Mr. Sharratt "incredible."

Noah Geary, a Washington County lawyer representing Mr. Sharratt, said his client will file suit today in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh accusing Mr. Murtha of violating his constitutional rights as well as slander for statements about the Haditha incident. A 1:30 p.m. news conference has been planned to announce the suit.

Awesome, I hope he takes every penny that fat, corrupt bastard has.

-McCain is now tied again among registered voters according to Gallup.

-Palin Derangement Syndrome is now a nationwide epidemic and the symptom of blithering idiocy is manifesting itself.

-Leave it to the local press of Chicago who know Obama best to actually vet him and dig into his shady deals of the past. At least the AP is now forced to cover it. Don't expect to see this story in the NY Times tomorrow.

The World Without the American Soldier

I would only add: or Marines, Sailors and Airmen as well:



Previous video:



Via America in the World.

"Mr. Murtha, When Will Your Hypocrisy End?"

Rep. John Murtha called a group of Marines "cold-blooded murderers" when they stood accused of killing innocent Iraqi's. Almost every Marine has since been cleared in the case, yet Murtha has not only not apologized but rubbed it in when voting on a critical bill.

Murtha is an ex-Marine (I know that Marines never refer to themselves that way but in Mr. Murthas case it's quite fitting) and as such should have given the men--one of whom is a constituent--the benefit of the doubt. Instead, he branded them "murderers" without waiting to hear the facts.

The father of one of the Marines takes Murtha to the woodshed in a video for Murtha's opponent in the November election:



Previous stories about this issue can be found here and here. Hat tip: Allahpundit.

Happy Birthday Jarheads

The US Marines became the greatest fighting force in the world 232-years ago today.

I served with many Marines as my US Navy ship was known as a "gator" built for the needs of Marines in amphibious assaults. We had roughly 300 devil dogs embarked and we played softball tournaments against one another in every port from Oman and the UAE to Singapore. In other words, we got along, which is not always the case when you mix jarheads and squids.

Happy birthday Marines.

Marines storming Tarawa, Gilbert Islands (Credit)

Update: More thoughts and wishes from Kurt P and a bonus Hoorah! Marine video: