Memorial Day ~ Remember And Honor...

They are dead; but they live in each Patriot's breast,
And their names are engraven on honor's bright crest.
~~~~~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


Memorial Day formerly known as Decoration Day has become a day our Nation uses to have big sales and family get-together's with BBQ's over a three day weekend. Yes, there are still Memorial Day Parades where towns and cities honor their own Fallen Heroes. They are becoming few and far between and sparsely attended.

Sad, that.

We have no greater obligation to our country than to remember those who gave their lives so that we remain "The Land of the Free and Home to the Brave". Those men and women who willingly paid the ultimate price while serving under our Flag, doing their utmost to deny those whose ideologies can't grasp the fact that freedom is what America represents to the rest of the world deserve that remembrance.

This Memorial Day, please take more than just a few minutes to remember ALL the lives that have been given freely and with honor.

Their only request is that we remember them...Will You?








Memorial Day and every day, I do.



And so it goes......

Message From The Brits...

The reputation of a thousand years may be determined by the conduct of one hour.
~~~~~Japanese Proverb




Our British allies have served valiantly in this 'War on Terror' in Afghanistan. Be sure to check out Helmand Blog to keep up with the news that they post from their position.

The other day, I noticed this 'Message to Terry Taliban' video and thought it worthy to share.

Major Dan reminded me in comments that we should be reading NATO Training Mission- Afghanistan to keep up with how they are working with the Afghans higher ups. You can also follow/like their page on Facebook. It doesn't take too much imagination to figure out that I do.


Anyways... Watch the video below to see the message 'Our Brit Guys' are sending out across the airways.







There's been lots of discussion on the ROE's for the troops in Afghanistan. Y'all should take yourselves over to Mudville Gazette and read Greyhawks post on that very subject. Salient points one and all.



And so it goes......

Woot!! The Man IS Back...

Feelings are much like waves, we can't stop them from coming but we can choose which one to surf.
~~~~~Jonatan Mårtensson



When I first started reading mil-blogs a few years ago, looking for any and all types of information on what 'Our Guys' were doing while deployed, (has it only been 3 years?) I started reading a blog by a man who used the anonymous blogger name of "AfghaniDan". At the time of him actively (2006) writing his blog, he was deployed to the Pech River Valley. He managed to find the time in between missions to describe what he and his fellow solders were doing. But by the time I found mil-blogs and how to search for them, thank you JP, AfghaniDan had returned Stateside. Thankfully, he left his archives untouched. I read them over and over, trying to understand what we as a Nation were doing in Afghanistan, and just exactly what our Military men and women were experiencing. Still am, for that matter.

Well...

Last night, a dear friend sent me a message on Facebook informing me that he was back in country and had resurrected his blog. Immediately after thanking her for sending me that great news, I clicked over. Yeppers, THE MAN IS BACK!!


Just to give you a bit of a teaser, I swiped borrowed an excerpt of his latest post...

A Day In The Life: Transient.

A word on transit within the Area of Operations...a primer, if you will, for those that have never had the pleasure. Let's say for purely hypothetical sake that you needed to fly from a notional desert airfield in the Gulf, serving as a major air transit hub, to another major transit hub located in a notional war-torn central Asian nation's capital region. Your initial feeling is a hopeful one...the reception cell has picked you up at the international airport, found you some temporary billeting, and signed you up at the 'terminal' for Space-R (reserved) travel on the next manifest. Imagine then that a couple of days creep by...each one filled with checking and re-checking your place on the list, and hoping to hear your name called at each roll call only to learn that either the flight has been canceled or that it is too full to take a single passenger. Despair sets in as you learn that others have been there for five days trying to reach your same destination (they may not call it a "surge" in HQ or in DC, but trust us, it's a surge...the meaning of the word doesn't change just because of some implication related to the other war).

Since returning to the country of his former deployment, he's been tasked with a new responsibility. Just click on over and see how that's working out for him. Oh, you might want to wish him "Congratulations" while you're there, I think he's been promoted to the new rank of Major.

I'm looking forward to his posts. You never know what they'll be doing, and who you'll see.



And so it goes......

Prescription Of The Day...

In the sick room, ten cents' worth of human understanding equals ten dollars' worth of medical science.
~~~~~Martin H. Fischer



Calling all Doctors! Report to the ER immediately!

Yes, you really need to go visit this Doctor and his team in Afghanistan. He post 'Pictures of the Day'. You don't want to miss them. Really, you don't.

Go to his waiting room, observe the actions of some of 'Our Guys' doing what they do to help more of 'Our Guys' who have been injured by the insane actions of Terrible Terry.

Be sure to let him know you stopped in. Oh, and don't forget to say "Thanks".



And so it goes......

Alive...But Busy Reading...

A book is the only place in which you can examine a fragile thought without breaking it, or explore an explosive idea without fear it will go off in your face. It is one of the few havens remaining where a man's mind can get both provocation and privacy.
~~~~~Edward P. Morgan


I know... I've been AWOL for a few weeks. Life is like that sometimes. So busy that you haven't a moment to spare. What I have been doing besides the normal life routine is reading a few books. Still trying to digest the information found within those bound pages. When I can form coherent thoughts and have a free hour or so, I'll be back to give those who still stop by the gist of what I think about some very worthy books.

Who knows... I might have to re-read several of them to further coalesce the jumbled contents of the gray matter.


And in the words of a great Warrior: I shall return.



And so it goes......