0P.
The 0P.
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By
DR
GrafiX
~ I Understand, I Know and I care ~ |
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To All Those We
Came Back To –
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The person who
went away is not the same one who came back. The changes may be slight or great, but no
one escapes a war unchanged. Every moment in life is a turning point, but some turns are
sharper than others; and
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For my
Children, who weren't born and so didn't know me before the war, perhaps this will help
explain some of your dad's strange behavior. Sometimes we require more of your patience
than we deserve.
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Understanding is often a slow process, but
someday
this war's gonna' end. Perhaps these
writings will help.
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11 B 
1 P
(Apocalypse From Time to Time)
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We try to
speak to a common experience in us, the 1% of Americans who went and came back...
more or less alive.
Being one out
of a hundred makes us not quite unique, although at times it does feel like it.
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I have found
that our experience is not unique in history: the common marching cadence,
"We're
here because we're here, because we're here..." was sung in World War I; and when
soldiers, during the Inquisition, asked their superiors how to tell the heretics from the
good Catholics, the answer was, "Kill them all, God will know
His own," echoing the common helmet scrawl in
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"Kill'em All And Let God Sort'em Out."
Picking back up
where we left off was easy for some, difficult for many; and for others, impossible. For
some of us, the costs assessed in
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I am one of those,
and each of these writings is a payment. We are not alone, and the payments can be
withstood.
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I WaN
Na Go Airborne…
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Whirling
Blades:
After WWI, the smell of decay brought back the trench-war to its survivors. For
In
These words and
thoughts are an attempt to explain that look in those eyes ...our eyes.
Copyright ? 1995 James M. Hopkins  |
| By
Kent Harris, Stars
and Stripes Mideast edition, Tuesday, March 29, 2005
While its
sister unit in The 173rd Airborne Brigade — the 2nd
Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment — held Kirkuk,
The Red Devils
traveled from small town to small town. Outposts were built up, then abandoned.
A month into their stay in Afghanistan, soldiers from the Vicenza,
Italy-based 1-508th appear to have a place to hang their Kevlar hats, At least for
short periods of time. Lt. Col. Tim
McGuire, the battalion commander, and his headquarters staff have set up shop at Forward Operating Base Orgun-E, a small but growing military
compound just outside the area’s largest city of Sharan. Sgt. 1st Class
Frank Lauer, the compound’s mayor, said it’s nice to have a place to call home,
unlike in Iraq. “I can count on two hands the times I was told, ‘You’re
never moving again,’ ” he says with a smile. It’s not
like the battalion is exactly standing still these days. Company B and Company C, have
elements on FOB Orgun-E. Soldiers rotate in between the main base and smaller compounds to
the north and south for weeks at a time. Company A is all stationed on-base. Capt. Joe
Geraci, the Company A commander, said his soldiers probably spend more time on patrol than
on base, though. He said a single patrol can take up to 10 days. Soldiers have a few days
in between to take advantage of the relative comfort of the FOB. Soldiers sleep
in brick buildings, with thin cement roofs. The buildings leak when it rains, so
they’re being retrofitted with wood-and- metal roofs. There’s an average of
eight soldiers to a room, most sleeping on beds, while others use cots. There’s
electricity in all the rooms, but none outside because of the potential for rocket and
mortar attacks at night. Showers —
usually with plenty of hot water — are located in a few buildings scattered around
the base.
Lauer said the
command is looking at a number of other projects to improve the quality of life of
soldiers on base, though “I don’t know if
we’ll ever cease being a FOB.” Most soldiers
seem to think they’re living better in Afghanistan than they did in Iraq. “Everything’s all built up for us here,” said Pvt.
Justin Roll. “It’s way better,” said Spc. Daniel Beckett.
“Not as good as we expected, but way better.” “Hot water and electricity,” said Spc. Eric Meinhardt.
“Can’t beat it.”
Al Qaeda has sent a message to leaders of the Democratic party that credit for the defeat
of congressional Republicans belongs to the terrorists.
In a portion of the tape from al Qaeda No. 2 man, Ayman al Zawahri, made available only
today, Zawahri says he has two messages for American Democrats.
“The first is that you aren’t the ones who won the midterm elections, nor are the Republicans the ones who lost. Rather, the Mujahideen — the Muslim Ummah’s vanguard in Afghanistan and Iraq — are the ones who won, and the American forces and their Crusader allies are the ones who lost,” Zawahri said, according to a full transcript obtained by ABC News.
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| $1M
FROM THE HARLEY-DAVIDSON FOUNDATION TO DISABLED AMERICAN VETERANS WILL PROVIDE BENEFITS
COUNSELING TO VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES IN COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY
“Veterans are important members of the Harley-Davidson family and the DAV Mobile
Service Office program will provide even more access to the benefits they are entitled to
receive,” said Gail Lione, President of the Harley-Davidson Foundation.
“We are honored to show support and appreciation to the brave men and women who have
sacrificed so much to protect our freedom.”
To learn more about the DAV Mobile Service Office or to show your support of this program
please go to http://www.supportdav.org/.
For
information on Harley-Davidson’s support of Veterans please contact Tony Shields,
Harley-Davidson Manager, Community Relations at tony.shields@harley-davidson.com.
|
|
Budget Reform Needed for
Veterans Health Care
The nine organizations that make up the Partnership for Veterans Health Care Budget Reform
have long sought congressional hearings to explore ways to guarantee full funding for
veterans health care, but those requests have not been honored. The latest request for
hearings was made in a Nov. 1 letter taking issue with Rep. Buyer’s recent assertion
that the current discretionary appropriations process has been a “successful funding
approach” to meeting the health care needs of America’s sick and disabled
veterans.
“The discretionary budget has become highly politicized and puts at risk the
VA health care system and its patient population. In the past 12 years,” the
Partnership letter noted, “Congress has completed only one regular VA appropriations
bill by the start of the new fiscal year. Unfortunately, the norm has become a series of
continuing resolutions each year that funds VA at the previous year’s level, holding
down spending and finally lumping VA’s budget into an omnibus spending bill.”
“This annual limbo hinders effective staffing decisions, construction planning, and
day-to-day management by VA leaders. Additionally, VA funding growth has not nearly kept
pace with its patient workload demands,” the letter said. “A method of assured
funding, such as H.R. 515 (Assured Funding for Veterans Health Care Act), would eliminate
the year-to-year uncertainty about funding levels. Annual fiscal turbulence rarely occurs
in comparable mandatory spending programs. It is blatantly unrealistic to expect VA to
manage efficiently and carry out its missions expertly without knowing what its projected
budget will be or when funds will be approved.”
Chairman Buyer has said that mandatory funding is an “inferior approach to
funding” and that Congress would lose its “oversight clout” of the VA
health care system under a mandatory funding mechanism. However, the Partnership believes
that guaranteed funding would simply ensure that VA is provided the necessary resources to
care for the enrolled patient population.
The Partnership letter also noted that all other mandatory programs still receive
congressional oversight. “We would expect your Committee to hold VA accountable for
how it spends every dollar and how well VA manages its health care programs.”
Each organization in the Partnership has approved resolutions that support guaranteed
funding for veterans’ health care.
|
You TuNNel 
Ratzzz !
|
 |
The bravery of our fellow US Marines
|
 A second Marine comes to the rescue and is struck by an enemy round. |
Nuclear
Plant Target For Stolen Rocket LaunchersJanuary 5th, 2007
Australia: Stolen Army rocket launchers are in the hands of a home-grown
terrorist group which planned to use them to attack Sydney’s Lucas Heights nuclear
reactor, police allege.
The Federal Police Commissioner, Mick Keelty, said a man arrested in Leumeah yesterday and
charged with possessing stolen weapons was linked to a group that had planned to attack
buildings in Sydney, including the reactor.
Mr Keelty would not publicly link the man, Taha Abdul-Rahman, directly to a plan to target the reactor, referring only to “evidence of a proposed target”, and saying: “Clearly, there was a plan for the use of the weapon.”
 In the attempt to evacuate the wounded Marine, the Marine to the left is fatally struck again by enemy fire and falls to the ground. |
Suspicious
Men Detained At January 7th, 2007
Update:
Three legal immigrants in a cargo truck were detained at the Port of Miami on Sunday after
a routine inspection raised concerns, but police say the incident may have stemmed in part
from a language barrier.
The
port’s cargo area was shut down Sunday as the Miami-Dade bomb squad X-rayed the truck
and scanned it for radioactive materials. Nothing unusual was found, officials said.
The
men in the truck two Iraqis and one Lebanese national were still detained by local police
Sunday evening, but authorities said no federal charges were expected. Officials initially
said the men, all permanent U.S. residents, had been caught trying to slip past a
checkpoint at the port’s entrance.
Three men were detained Sunday after trying to gain access to the Port of Miami, according
to a spokeswoman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The driver drew suspicion at the port’s delivery entrance around 8 a.m. after making
inconsistent statements, said Judy Orihuela. The driver could not produce the requested
paperwork to identify himself and his cargo.
The vehicle was subsequently searched and two additional men were found in the
truck’s cab, Orihuela said. According to Miami-Dade Police detective Robert Williams,
the men were trying to conceal themselves.
The three detainees, all of Middle Eastern descent, were in the country legally and none
appear to be on any terrorist watch lists, Oriheula said.
There was no immediate threat to the port, but its cargo area was closed while authorities
used an X-ray machine to search the truck, Orihuela said. The Miami-Dade Bomb Squad is
checking the vehicle the men were in.
“We want to make sure that trailer was not carrying anything hazardous,”
Williams said.
The
men are currently being questioned by the FBI.
 This sad photo shows two of our brave brothers lying motionless on the ground. The Marine on the right will survive, but sadly the Marine on the left who came to rescue his fellow Marine would not survive. |
These are the images you will not see
on CNN, but as hard as they may be to look at, it is important to see them as Marines
to honor,
and to be filled with a sense of honor and respect for those brave men who have fallen and
for those who would unselfishly risk their own lives for their fellow Marines. Please
say a prayer for all of our troops, and pass this on so that others may see the honor
and bravery of our brothers in action.
Ricr0c
Out~
| By
Kent Harris,
Stars
and Stripes Mideast edition, Wednesday, March 16, 2005
BAGRAM
AIR BASE,
Afghanistan
— The lightning bolt has given way to the lion. The
Southern SETAF,
whose patches feature St. Mark’s lion, becomes the first non-division size element to
run the mission in Afghanistan since the United States forced out the ruling Taliban
government following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
“This
is the most well-prepared group of soldiers that I have ever handed a mission over to in
my 32 years in the United States Army,”
said Maj. Gen. Eric Olson, the 25th ID commander. He and his headquarters staff boarded a
military transport plane shortly after the ceremony and headed back to Hawaii. Maj.
Gen. Jason Kamiya, the SETAF commander, will lead a force of about 18,000 troops —
anchored by thousands of airborne
soldiers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade
and the
1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division.
But a host of other active and reserve elements from the Army,
Marines,
Air
Force,
Navy
and coalition
partners
will fall under the command. It’s
not the first time SETAF has led a joint task force in a peacekeeping operation in a
country torn by years of fighting. In 2003, it headed a joint operation about a third of
the size of the force in Afghanistan force to help bring peace to Liberia. Kamiya
said his troops are prepared to carry on the tasks the 25th ID and those before them
began. “We
are well-trained, well-resourced and are ready for the challenges ahead,”
he said. Many
elements of the 25th’s task force still are in country
and will remain until they’ve shown their replacements the ropes. The
1st Battalion, 508th Infantry Regiment,
a part of the SETAF force in Vicenza, Italy, already is on the ground and conducting
operations. But many other elements won’t arrive for weeks. Several
hundred soldiers and Marines, some leaving and some newly arrived, watched the ceremony in
the base’s medevac hangar. Also in attendance: representatives from about a dozen coalition
countries,
ambassadors
from the United States and Canada, Secretary
of the Army
Francis Harvey, Afghan
government officials
and Lt. Gen. David Barno, the top American
commander
in country.
Barno
praised the efforts of Olson and the 25th during their year of operations. Among
the highlights he listed: “a
stunningly successful Afghan election”
that produced President Hamid Karzai, the
capture or death of dozens of Taliban leaders
and the expansion
of provincial reconstruction teams
from four to 19 across the country. Olson
asked for a moment of silence for the more than 20
troops in the task force killed in the last year.
He said he considered the mission the most important in his career.
An Air Force B-1 bomber capped the ceremony, flying by well under the clouds that doused the base with rain. The country’s seven-year drought appears to be over. But the mission has just begun for SETAF.
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