[Al Norris]

I have a friend over in Bend, Oregon, who has two sons that are in the Army. One has served in both Afghanistan and Iraq, and the other is still in Iraq.

As she tells it, the other day, a young man was in her gift shop and whined to his mother, because he just found out that he wouldn't be getting any mail on Veterans Day, "Veterans, Who Do They Think They Are?"

Well, Laural got mad. Mad at the mother who hadn't educated her son and mad at herself because she didn't answer the young man. So when she got home, she wrote what follows, so if it ever happened again, she would be able to answer.

"Veterans, Who Do They Think They Are?"

They are the men and women who live every day in pain. Physical pain from their wounds, lost limbs, or maybe it's the shrapnel they still carry. Emotional pain from being separated from their families for long periods of time. For missing the birth of their child, or death of a parent. Mental pain for what they have seen and what they had to do. Pain from knowing that they would have died for you and you are not wise enough to know you should care.

They are the ones who make life-long friends. They know how precious life is and they never forget the ones who didn't make it back. Never. That is why you will see Veteran's at the cemetery on Memorial Day walking around and silently thanking the ones who are buried there. They don't have to know them personally to know the sacrifice each one made.

They are the ones who are loud and boisterous. They are the ones who are quiet.
They are the ones who shivered in the foxhole, trying to keep the enemy at bay.
They are the ones who crawled through sand when the temperature was 126 degrees.
They are the ones who carried their buddy to safety.
They are the ones who sometimes drink too much, trying to keep the memories from haunting them.
They are the ones who carry the flag with the honor and respect it deserves.
They are the ones who wear their military uniform with pride and still have it in their closet 30 some years later.
They are the ones who don't ask you to go out of your way for them.
They are the ones who have gone out of their way for you.
They are the ones who spent many nights awake on guard duty so you didn't have to.
They are the ones who helped keep our shores safe while you played video games.
They are the ones who missed their birthdays, anniversaries, and other important dates.
They are the ones who got shot and got sent home, but felt guilty because their buddies were still there.
They are the ones who followed orders even when they didn't want to.
They are the ones who had enough love and pride in their country to do a job many others couldn't do.
They are the ones who stepped up when the call went out.
They are the ones who ate MRE's till they were sick of them.
They are the ones who cried "Medic" at the top of their lungs though they couldn't even hear their own voice.
They are the ones who cried when they were alone in their tent.
They are the ones who flew planes, drove tanks, worked a ship, and armed the missiles.
They are the ones who had moms at homes praying for them every minute of every day.
They are the ones who made it safe for you so you could go to school or work.
They are the ones who missed ordering pizza, the movies, the shopping trips, and all that you take for granted.
They are the ones who asked to take a friend's deployment because that friend had a family.
They are the ones who gave their girlfriends a lock of their hair to keep as a promise of their return.
They are the ones who wanted to come home
They are the ones who didn't return.
They are the ones who waited months for a letter.

How can you not wait one day?

God Bless Our Veterans,
Laurel A. Olmsted
Wife Of A Veteran
Proud Mother of two Veterans
(C) November 8, 2003

edited per authors' request.

[P95Carry]

Al .... OK I know this is not specifically gun related as a thread but ... I'll endorse your post 100% ... I am sickened by the attitudes of so many to vet's ..... and just hope that this Veteran's day .. people do actually STOP ... and also THINK ..... why and how they have the lives they do, and enjoy.

I salute all vet's ....... http://www.bedford.net/design/images/smilies/salute.gif http://www.bedford.net/design/images/smilies/salute.gif

[Al Norris]

P95, yeah, I know it's not strictly gun related. (But then neither are LawDogs best!)

I just wanted to get this out. She's a good writer and the message deserves to be read/heard. I figured General was the best place to post it.

My apologies to the Mods, if'n ya think it needs lockin.

[sm]

God Bless Our Veterans,
Laurel A. Olmsted
Wife Of A Veteran
Proud Mother of two Veterans
(C) November 8, 2003

Al, thank Mrs. Olmsted.
Al thank you for sharing.
I ask that this be put in THR archives please, and floated for a bit.

[Drjones]

Awesome.

Salute!

[Oleg Volk]

Worth floating.

[AR-15Nutt]

i am a 24 year retired Vet...., i thank you all very much, it was an honor to serve & protect my fellow Americans............, even liberals !!;)

[280PLUS]

sometimes months for a letter that never came,,,

or you didn't want...

thanx all!

and you're welcome too!!

:)

added later,,,

i also remember one who took a second tour in viet nam so his brother wouldn't have to go,,,

[RWK]

I am a 20+ year, retired vet. I have only wish for this Veterans Day – and every day until our young men and women return from northwest Asia: Let them know – and let their families know, too – how much their service and sacrifice is appreciated. Keep them in you hearts and in your prayers. And remember that they have NOTHING to do with the formulation of our national security policies, notwithstanding the fact that the brunt of the pain associated with its execution fall squarely on them.

[Leatherneck]

What RWK said ^^^

TC
TFL Survivor

[Steve in PA]

A salute to all veterans......from all the services.....on this Veterans Day.


Semper Fi

USMC 1979-1983

[Hkmp5sd]

I occasionally like to hear massive whining at work and one easy way to get the employees in an uproar is to state that only veterans should get Veteran's Day off as a paid holiday.

[cdbeaver]

AR15Nutt:

This semi-liberal fought in combat just so you could have the privilege to badmouth him.

[Lone_Gunman]

The best way our country can honor our veterans is by closing the post office for a day.

That kind of puts it all in perspective doesnt it.

[Brian Williams]

Semper Fi
75-79

[280PLUS]

we served the exact same time,,,

'cept i did 1 more and got out in '80

:D

[motorep]

You're not going to change them, or change their minds. They're lesser men for having not served when others did. They know it, we know it..
USAF 66-68, Life Member DAV.

[Ironbarr]

Thanks to all who gave, and ALL who gave all that I could do mine in reasonable safety, retire and live on.

UP THE USA.

-Andy

[FPrice]

Beautiful. Those two young men have a very good mother.

[rayjay]

Thank you Vets. God speed to all the soliders is Afgan and Iraq.

**Please Lord return all our charges safely**

[Al Norris]

Laurel sent me this, when I relayed all of your responses. I know she would be proud for you to read it.

Al I cannot tell you how much this touched me. That Vets would thank me when I am so thankful to them for all they have done. It actually made me cry! I walked out to share this with Wayne and had to preface it with, "These are good tears." I didn't want to unduly alarm him!

Thank you for posting the article and thank you for sending me the responses.

Today I am finishing up Christmas messages to send to the troops. The boxes will go out tomorrow.

Tues I will be on the radio talking about the support group and my own special veterans, then our Veterans Mass at 9, and the cemetery program at 11. I will be reading something that I wrote awhile back. I am very nervous but getting these responses today will give the strength to get through this. I am not a public speaker but God seems to be making me into one.

HUGS to you my friend.
God Bless!
Laurel

Laurel will read the following at the graveside program. It was written over a year and a half ago and has made the rounds in various emails. It even came back to her in the form of a visiting soldier, on leave between duty from Iraq to Germany last Sept. The world is indeed small.

THEY ARE OUR SOLDIERS

They carry the weight of the world as easy as they carry their gear on their back.

They are missed at Sunday dinners and spend birthdays overseas.

They eat MRE's and dream of home-cooked meals and family.

Their leave is never long enough and goodbyes come to soon.

They have responsibilities that we could never imagine and that creates places within them where we are not welcome. Places that only the soldier, one arms length away, would understand.

They make friendships that even years later causes their eyes to light up and their speech to become more rapid as they tell their stories.

They are our heroes. They sacrifice to serve. They defend us from enemies seen and unseen and at times, they defend us from ourselves.

Indoor plumbing, a real bed, and laundry rooms are an unknown luxury in a war zone and take on a whole new importance. They will long remember the smell of the cot and the feel of the grit from the ever-present sand.

They carry pictures of their children and families alongside magazines of live ammo.

They are a paradox of gentleness and warrior. They bleed red, white, and blue, and they cry real tears. They carry guilt for those they left behind and guilt for what may await them.

The letters they send are never long enough or frequent enough. The letters we send them are never long enough or frequent enough. So each letter is read and reread until they can recite each line by heart.

It matters not what branch they chose to serve in. They are a brotherhood of proud men and women. They are in our prayers and in our hearts.

They are our soldiers. They have earned the right to be are our heroes. May we earn the right to call ourselves Americans and give them the respect and support they deserve.


God Bless America!
Written By The Mother Of Two U.S. Soldiers.
C) Laurel A. Olmsted 5/13/02

Semper Fi
Vietnam, class of '69

[OEF_VET]

What really irks me about Veterans Day is the stores who think of it as just another excuse to have a sale. If they're going to have a sale, how about it only being for vets? It's just another way this country is showing its' indifference to those who made it what it is. <rant mode off>

Frank

[JShirley]

I reckon, if there's indifference, it's because we have failed to pass on our respect and honor for those who served.

John, recently of the "baby arty", 11Charlie

[Brigrat]

Semper Fi 96-00

[HeavyHaul]

SeaBees, Can Do.
1981-Present

[hops]

Nov. 11, 1918 - Armestice Day. When the guns fell silent in Europe. One generation was buried and another generation was born, only to do it all over again 20 years later.

[Stickjockey]

Hey hops-

Ya wanna hear something sad? I'm not sure if anyone I work with (and it's quite a few) would know that Veteran's Day was originally Armistice Day or even what Armistice Day was all about!:(

Thanks vets!!

[mattd]

Some are politcations that say "Shut your mouth, I'm a Veteran, how dare you speak against me".

Why is the flag on their arms backwards? Shouldn't the union be on the flags right?

[71Commander]

Tomorrow is Veteran's Day and I have to go to work. I work at General Motors and they give us Veteran's Day off, only it's the 14th of November. The reason they do it this way is so that all the deer hunters won't take a work day off for opening day of deer season. So every year the hunters get opening day off from work in celebration of the vet's.

I missed something here.

[motorep]

The flag is not on backwards. The stars always lead. Picture an American flag leading a parade- the stars lead whether viewed from the right or left side.

[NavajoNPaleFace]

Al,

As an Army MP vet ('68-'71) I appreciate you posting Laurel's heart felt composition.

[RustyHammer]

BZ !!!

[JeremyIA]

http://www.militarypolice.com/regcrest.gif

1996-PRESENT


NavajoNPaleFace--Good to see another one on board here.

[Rockrivr1]

That is a great message. Veterans deserve our utmost respect and admiration. It's to bad that some people don't understand or appreciate that what they have is because men and women have dedicated at least a portion of thier lives to making them safe. I personally am a very patriotic person, which is why I joined many years ago. I'd join again if my country needed me. I figure it's the least I could do for all the opportunities I've had since I left the Armed Services.

U.S Navy
85-89

[Eyeless]

It's okay to have a day off for, or a sale on, or even to move Vets day to coincide with the opening of deer season. Just remember why.

[Vern Humphrey]

At Sunday Mass, our priest asked all the veterans in the congregation to stand. My wife (Army Nurse from '63 to '67) and I (Infantry '62 to '85) were proud to stand up together. I only wished my oldest daughter (Captain, USAR from '91 to '02) had been with us.

[Henry]

Thank You Vets !

[RocketMan]

Good for Laurel, and her family.

Semper Fi
1974-1979

And

Happy Birthday, United States Marine Corps!

[Ala Dan]

Many, many thanks to all Veterans from all branches of service!:D

And as we pause on Tuesday," please raise a toast of water to
those who are absent today as prisoners of war or missing in
action. To those who served so honorably, who were lost or
are still as yet unaccounted for. To our comrades, who gave
their tommorows for our todays".

Quote from the VietNam Wall Experience
currently on display through 1700 hrs on Veterans Day
at Elmwood Cemetery in Birmingham, AL

Respectfully,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

[bigsapper]

Thanks and never forget
VetFriends (http://www.dotnetconsultant.com/misc/vetfriends.htm)

[P95Carry]

To our comrades, who gave
their tomorrows for our todays".
That - sums it up pretty well ......

All the sheeple out there ... remember that, please.

[grampster]

I have a framed copy of Lee Teter's famous 1988 painting, "Reflections" framed and hanging on my garage wall in front of my pickup. Evey morning when I leave for work or elsewhere, and every day when I return, I gaze for a minute at that moving scene and am reminded about what many have given in order that I might have the privilege to come and go as I please each day.

E Pluribus Unum!

grampster

[P95Carry]

Grampster . I am half thinkin I know the pic you refer to .... but not sure. Can you find a link that might show it? Or have a pic yourself to post?

I tried an image search but that title gives about 10,000 hits!!!

[OH25shooter]

To all veterans I say: THANK YOU. And, due to the bravery of the many WWll vets I can say it in English!

USAF: 1968-72

[WAGCEVP]

It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate. It is the soldier, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial. It is the soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves under the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag.

THANK YOU , VETERANS, WE LOVE YOU !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) ;)

[grampster]

P95,

On Google, type in lee teter on google search. hit enter.

[Al Norris]

Here's a link that will get you a 600x550 pixel picture:

http://www.usssatyr.com/reflections.htm

[sm]

I got the chills viewing that pic. Eyes a bit misty too. Again tommorrow I will view our local wall as I have since it was completed, Insert a guy in jeans, tennis shoes, moustache and longer hair...that'll be me...

To all Vets, to all in harms way...Thanks.

[NavajoNPaleFace]

That's a great pic, Al.

I saved it and I intend to enlarge the image, print it and hang it in my reloading shop.

I lost several buds in Nam.

Thanks.

[Al Norris]

We all lost buddies over there. I envy those of you that can look at The Wall. I have never been able to....

[JeremyIA]

NavajoNPaleFace--Thank you for your service. A former Platoon Sergeant of mine (best damn female platoon sergeant in the MP Corps) gave her life for one of her soldiers in Korea a few years ago. I still get choked up over it about once a year. She is one of the many reasons why I'm going to stick it out for the full 20 (or more). Thank YOU for your service!

Assist, Protect, Defend

[Nightfall]

To every single person who served our nation, both here on this thread, and from times long past...

Thank you.

[KMKeller]

My son thought it ironic that there was a day for me to celebrate myself...

Raising one for all you brother and sister vets out there.

[DorGunR]

For all the posters who said Thank You.........

YOU'RE WELCOME......:)

US Army 1950-1972

[jerryd]

Everytime i go to the wall i get goose bumps and cry! Spent 2yrs there so i know what our service men and women are going thru and I salute them and all vets. Its funny how you read the paper with all the sales the stores are having and not one will mention a special discount for VETS! Said my peace, God Bless All Our Troops and VETS! jerryd

[Ironbarr]

Home Depot (here) had 10% discount, thru today, all week.

Furniture galore offering 15%. WOW! On a normal markup of 150+%. Really great, huh?

Oh well. What's new?

Now, if I could only find some Win Q3131A I'd pass on the discount.

-Andy

[Khornet]

It's still too long and clumsy, but the point is valid.

THE SOUND OF ROTOR BLADES

Every guy needs a good workbench, preferably in the basement or garage. When I was stationed at Camp Lejeune, the climate made a garage setup practical. I could work on my projects with the big doors open, thereby keeping one eye or ear on my kids at the same time.

Every so often we'd hear the thudding whop-whop of approaching helicopter blades, as the Marines flew their CH -46 or their big Sea Stallion birds over. The children would always run outside for a look, especially since sometimes the big choppers would come over quite low , and the crew would wave the to them. After I met the Sergeant Major, I thought of him and David every time that happened.

The Navy has always been short on physicians. The active duty, dependent, and retired population at Camp Lejeune would normally require 15 or more primary care internists, and we had five. Since our primary mission was care of the active duty Marines and sailors, and next in line were the active duty dependents, retirees often got the short end of the stick. Whenever our backlog became too severe, the clinic would be declared closed to retirees. Of course, the person who made that decision was never the young medical officer who had to see the faces of the veterans of Okinawa, Tarawa, and Khe Sanh as he turned them away. Like my brother physicians, I would squeeze them in wherever I could until someone complained of congestion in the clinic and I would be called on the carpet.

The Sergeant Major was one of these retirees. A Marine helicopter crew chief, he served in Vietnam and also with HMX-1, flying the President. That gleaming helicopter bringing the President to the White House from Camp David -- that was the Sergeant Major's bird. He came to the emergency room with what turned out to be a minor problem, and I was called to authorize his referral to a civilian facility. Not having the heart to turn away another veteran, I told the emergency room physician to have him come by the clinic in the morning.

Have you ever been surprised by the fruit of what you thought was a very small kindness?

The Sergeant Major's problem was disposed of in a very few minutes, but while he was at the clinic he took the time to ask a few questions about the doc. Finding out that I liked to fish, he told me to come out to his farm anytime and fish his pond. This I of course did, finding wonderful fishing for large and gullible bass. The wonderful fruit of my small kindness was that he persuaded me to try fly fishing, beginning a passion which has stayed with me through the years…. but that's another story.

Michael R. Bowen M.D. continued on page 2



THE SOUND OF ROTOR BLADES page 2


I began to bring my children, and before long the Sergeant Major had forsaken his fishing rod to spend the time with my children while I fished. I'd walk up to the house as dusk approached to find him sitting , chuckling, in a lawn chair watching them playing. But the toys they were playing with were the toys of my own childhood: Davey Crockett coonskin caps, Gunsmoke gun and holster sets, gyroscopes, hula hoops in mint condition, a strange blast from the past.

"Some pretty old toys," the Sergeant Major said. " Looks like you remember ‘em.” Yes, I said, I sure did, and I asked about his kids.

He'd had two sons; the eldest was a lawyer of some sort, and very different from his father. He never came to share his dad's love of fishing and hunting, and seems to have grown farther away from him in adulthood. He lived not too far away, in the same state, but they rarely saw him.

But David was dad's best buddy. He wanted nothing more than to be where dad was, doing what dad did. His father told of a fishing trip to which turned into a grim test of endurance, anchored in a rowboat in the middle of a lake as wind and sleet drilled through their ponchos. David's lips were turning blue, but he smiled up at his father and said, through chattering teeth, "Fun, huh Dad?" -- and meant it. It was David's toys my children played with.

Naturally, David joined the Marines. As luck would have it, Father and son were sent to Vietnam at the same time. The Sergeant Major had a fairly safe billet in Saigon, but David was a grunt in a rifle platoon. This, I thought, would be about the time the Sergeant Major's wife's hair turned white.

Anyway, one day David got liberty and hitchhiked to Saigon to see his dad. The Sergeant Major got him a hot shower, a hot meal, and a night in a real bed with clean sheets. Next morning he took him to see the chaplain. When it was time to leave, the chaplain said, "David, do you like to drink beer?" "No, sir," David answered. "but the guys in my platoon do." So the chaplain gave him a case of Schlitz to take back to his firebase. The Sergeant Major made David exchange his battered flak jacket for his own, which was practically new. Then he took him over to Highway 1 to hitch a ride back to his unit. "I left him standing at the side of the road, wearing my new flak jacket, the case of beer on his shoulder."

"It was 1968. I never saw him again."

Michael R. Bowen M.D. continued on page 3



THE SOUND OF ROTOR BLADES page 3

Years later, on temporary duty in Washington, I went with a friend to visit the Wall. We looked up David's name in the directory, and found it in the polished black stone. Dressed in our summer white uniforms, we stood before the name as I told David's story. When I finished we turned to find that a small crowd had gathered, listening silently and sneaking photographs. Somewhere in somebody's album there is that picture of us, and David's story will be retold whenever the album is taken out. Which is as it should be.

So when the thudding of rotor blades brings my children outside to see, I think how blessed America has been to have men like David and the Sergeant Major. In so very many other countries, that sound still sends children running in terror. I can't repay those men for what they gave us, but I can remember them when I hear that sound. It's the Sound of Freedom.



Michael R. Bowen M.D.

[madmike]

From Steve Russell:

There are one or two folks in there that are saying that the holiday should be only for vets or the sales should be only for vets. I think they are missing the point. We are vets so we can all be free. We don't ask for special consideration, just remembrance. That is enough and all we ask.

To the Horse, 1st Cavalry, 1969

~~~~~~~~~~~~

And thanks from me, with this:

If you can read this sticker, thank a teacher.

If you can read it in English, thank a vet.

Mike, who enlisted before he was a citizen--USAF 1985-1990, USArmy 1990-1995, Air Guard, 1995-

With the rank and the pay of a sapper.

[P95Carry]

Grampster, Al .. thx for the inf on ''Reflections'' . oh yes ... it was the one I thought, but hey ...... had not seen it in some while and when I did ... well, what can I say .... it speaks - VOLUMES. An example ''par excellance'' of how a picture can speak a 1,000 words.

I feel guilty, because I cannot say that I have served ..... and it seems therefore almost deceitful to express my own support and feelings.

However, I know many ....... way too many ..... who have served, been injured - and died, in the many conflicts from and including WWII ... and I identify ..... strongly. Maybe most of all I am possessive of a vivid imagination - and a natural empathy toward those who gave so much. I have mentally been there with them.

I only have to think of all the Wives, Mothers, Fathers, Brothers and Sisters and kids ..... who's lives have been irreversibly changed, as a result of sacrifices by others in their families ...... it takes little imagination indeed to consider the effects of losing my own son or daughter.

So - this day and its meaning is in a way, no less significant for me ... than if I had served. I still salute them all, and always will, and will continue to be deeply upset when others treat vet's with disdain and indifference.

[Gus Dddysgrl]

Thanks to all Vets.

I was going to join the Marines like my daddy, but chose not to. I almost wish I would have, but I wouldn't be who I am now.

Instead of being a veteran I am going to be a knowlegable citizen who will wisely use my rights, provided by our soldiers, to let others know what they do for us. Also doing my part to protect those here from local threats, while training the next generation to do their part to support our troops and be a good citizen grateful to them for our rights, our way of life, and our lives.

[OEF_VET]

Khornet, very powerful story. Thanks for sharing it.

I don't have a problem with stores having a Veteran's Day sale in and of itself. My problem is when they advertise it using red and green colors, with the obvious intent of making it another 'better hurry up, Christmas is only 6 weeks away' sale. If they would actually attempt to make it a little less Christmas-sale minded, I wouldn't be so peeved.

There is one garage down the street from me that offered free oil changes for vets last year. I don't know if they're doing it again this year. If they are, I think I'll stop in and say thanks. I don't really need my oil changed yet, but they should know that someone appreciates their gratefulness and generosity.

Frank

[LynnKCircle]

"As I was going up the stair,
I saw a man who wasn't there.
He wasn't there again today,
I wish, I wish he'd go away."

That pretty well describes my own military service 1961-64. Nothing glamorous- I was just an anonymous oxymoron who got the vacation of a life time at one of Unca Sammy's Japanese resorts. And yes, I was one of the lucky ones. But I still think military service should be like polio vaccine -- something EVERYONE does once in his life.

Lynn Circle

[Carlos Cabeza]

I'll give props ! Thank you all very much. I'm gonna call my Dad and thank him !!!! :cool:

[mod12]

it's been a while since i had a tear on my cheek. must be getting old.

[geekWithA.45]

Not many posts bring tears to my eyes.

It is the highest accolade I can offer.

Thanks, veterans.

In gratitude for what you have preserved, our best tribute is to practice everything that makes America great, every single day.

[grampster]

Got an e mail from a friend who has active military friends in Iraq and Kuwait. His e mail to me was a forward of another e mail sent to one of those friends in Iraq from another friend who witnessed the following: Here is an abreviated version.
While stacked up in Baltimore at the airport due to the Kali fires a couple weeks ago, the crowd was understandably cranky. Planes were delayed and cancelled. A group of young military folk in desert camo's were also sitting around. Suddenly the announcement came that flight to Denver was seriously overbooked and would anyone like to take a bump. Naturaly, under the circumstances, there were no volunteers. The announcement was repeated, this time explaining that the airline had purposely overbooked the flight so that ALL of the soldiers who were sitting around could get home together quickly as they only had 14 days out of Iraq and they were on that flight. Suddenly everybody on the flight came forward and voluntarily gave up their seats so that the young warriors could get home without any more delay.

God Bless America and may the sacrifice made by the few for the many continue to be appreciated like the example of this story, for all time.

grampster

PS: How do you get tears off the keyboard?

[P95Carry]

Thank heaven basic human decency still lives .... may it continue and flourish.:)

[hops]

grampster:

Here is a link to your received email. http://www.lt-smash.us/archives/2003_11.html

This is supposedly not an urban legend. It's supposedly for real.
You'll need to scroll down a bit - the story is under a heading of - Sandbox Roundup.

[Safety First]

Where would this country be if were not for the Vets ? Better question is, would this be the USA without the vets? Especially those who are rarely mentioned any anymore, the Revolutionary War Vets. My hat is off to all of the vets who served, all the way back to the beginning of our proclamation of freedom. I salutesya guys and gals..needless to say I am one more proud American, not just on Veterans Day but every day, Lordy dont get me started on how Blessed we are to live in this country...

[MOAMike]

Thanks to all my brothers in arms before me.

De Oppresso Liber.


'79-'00
US Army

[Jedi_7.62]

Just wanted to take an opportunity to say thanks to all the Veterans.

Who do they think they are?

They are the ones who have and do make it possible for us to take everything in everyday life for granted.

They are the ones who make it possible for us to sleep in our warm beds at night while they shiver in a mud hole in some foreign land that many people couldn't find on a map.

Thanks again to all who serve and have served.

[Delmar]

I know Veteran's Day is supposed to be for the Veterans, but I would like to extend my appreciation to the parents, wives, children and friends of the veterans who may not have seen the bad things for themselves, but have provided the love and support we needed when we came back.

They did not demand an explanation of why we were so changed, and have tried mightily to understand what we did. They have the burden to see hell through our eyes, and to watch over us in times of fitful sleep. They may not understand why we see the world the way we do, but they comfort us and give pleasure in ways we cannot always describe.

My wife protested my war, but never the men and women who fought it. She saw the government as spineless, prefering to put Americans in mortal danger without the will to take it to the enemy as it should have been.

I buried her in the National Cemetary in Dallas this past March, where she lies next to a WWII lieutenant who served with the 8th AF on one side, and a Korean War Marine on the other. She did more than anyone to help me assimilate back into the real world, and prayed for me often (mostly looking skyward and saying, "God-he really didn't mean that:) ).

We veterans fought literally tooth and nail for each other, but they fight to keep us sane, and are a very important reason that we serve, if not the most important one of all.

Many thanks for the shoulder and the helping hand.

[bigsapper]

grampster:

Here is a link to your received email. http://www.lt-smash.us/archives/2003_11.html

This is supposedly not an urban legend. It's supposedly for real.
You'll need to scroll down a bit - the story is under a heading of - Sandbox Roundup.


An excellent source for checking out urban legends is Snopes.com (http://www.snopes.com)



http://www.snopes.com/politics/war/onleave.asp

[Al Norris]

Folks, I've just finished copying all of your responses and will send them to Laurel right after this. I thought you might all be interestd in what she thinks, so here are two of her most recent emails:

Thank you for keeping me posted.

I printed out the responses and I am going to put them in a binder. If you get any more, please let me know.

Today I did a radio interview and then read "They Are Our Soldiers" at the cemetery. I didn't pass out!!!!

A lady came up to me afterwards and was just sobbing. She told me that she knew I read from the heart and that I was living what I wrote.

Tonight another guy at the American Legion crabfeed, told me that he thinks I should read more often because it is from the heart.

He gave me a great compliment. He said I don't know how you know the heart of the Veteran but a statement in what you wrote hit home. He told me that he had never been able to talk to his family about his being shot down and all that he had gone through. But the statement in TAUS that says, "They have responsibilities that we could never imagine and that creates places within them where we are not welcome. Places that only the soldier, one arms length away, would understand." To be told by a Vet that I knew his heart, well, we got a bit emotional.

Oh, after the ceremony at the cemetery, the news guy came up and asked for a copy. I gave him the one I had read from and he told me, "This is a different one then we published in todays paper." I asked him what he had said and he repeated it. I didn't know "Veterans Who Do They Think They Are?" was going to be in tonight's paper! Well, I suppose I will hear from the kids family as soon as they read it cuz they will without a doubt know who they are!

Pray for me cuz that whole family is BIG and I mean BIG! Big and stupid...hmmmm! :-)

God Bless!
Laurel

The next email is the result of her asking me what my email tagline means.

the tag is:
"Sed quis custodiet ipsos custodes"
MOLON LABE!

After defining the terms, I wrote a rather lenghty responses as to why I use it. I was a little hesitant, as I never have asked her where she stands on the 2A, and I hoped I wouldn't lose her friendship. I needn't have worried:

This may surprise you but I am in full agreement with all you said. The ACLU and the "politically correct" have caused the world to tip at a very bad angle.

I too am in favor of protecting our families and I read articles regarding the victims of burglaries being sued by the very ones who invaded their homes! grrrrrr!!!!!!

Thank you all for responding.

[StressPuppy]

I was brought up in a patriotic family with both grandfathers serving in the military and in WWII. They never talked much about it, and as a little kid, I never understood why. As I have gotten older, I have begun to realize what they went through, although I will NEVER fully comprehend it, nor would I want to.

Because of what they taught me, I consider myself very patriotic and am so grateful for the sacrifices of the men and women who keep us free. As a country, we may feel that such service is not necessary as things seem to be "in control" for us, but without these dedicated and brave souls, we would not have what we have, nor would we continue to have it.

I know I am a day late responding to this thread, but let me say a HUGE thank you to the men and women of our armed forces, past, present and future. Your undertakings are some of the noblest jobs. You job is to allow me the freedom to choose for myself how my life should play out. Without that choice, none of us could live up to the God given talents that we have, and that truly would be a shame.

As for the lady and her son, I can only say that I feel much sorrow for them. To not understand how we got to be where we are, is to not truly understand WHO we are. And none of that could be done without the our armed forces.

Hopefully that wrong will someday be rectified, and more importantly, I hope that it doesn't continue in other families.

May the Lord smile on all those serving to protect their countries through honest and dedicated efforts. And may He push back tyranny such that those protecting us are not required to be in harms way on a regular basis.

[OH25shooter]

I got hooked on your story immediately. Before I was finished I was hoping it wouldn't end in tragedy. It did. Cherish that memory forever. Thanks Doc. For the story and your kind and warm honest feelings towards veterans. You are in a very select group. Fortunately, in your profession you can help. Before they are all gone and forgotten.

USAF: 1968-1972

[Vern Humphrey]

A Prayer for Politicians and Famous Personalities

May they find the character and courage to resist the temptation to make hay with opposition to this war, and not do to this generation of American men and women what they did to my generation.

[grampster]

Hops Bigsapper

Thanks for the info.....interesting stuff.

Hops, according to my pal, who is a Revolutionary War re enactor and author of several books about the RW, one of his fellow re enactors commands an MP company in Kuwait and actually got this e mail from the author of it, who saw the thing with his own eyes. I just love the internet for being able to have a ring side seat for so much stuff that happens outside the "Institutionalized Mainstream Media" (turn on cynic mode) which I consider to be the greatest propaganda machine since Joseph Goebbels. (turn off cynic mode)

grampster

[Ed]

I never fought in any wars but did serve in the Army and would have fought if asked to. Yesterday I ate lunch with 2 Vietnam war vets. We were all working and took off to eat. Funny how there are so many other people who never served who got the day off.

[MeekandMild]

Funny, I was sitting at a meeting at work this Veteran's day trying to figure out the new state requirements to "accomodate" deaf customers. The guy across the table and I got to talking about deafness in general. Turns out he's deaf in the left ear from feeding a mortar and I'm deaf in the right ear from sitting over a jet engine. Lots of vets I know are deaf but the only deaf folks I've ever met who made a fuss about being "accomodated" were non-vets.

[Phil Ca]

This past week has been a rocky one. I heard on Monday last week that a PFC Karina Lau was on the Chinook chopper that was shot down with troops aboard that were to start a 2 week R&R at home. I checked on the net for the newspapers around the area and found articles about the incident in IRAQ and the names of the soldiers that lost their lives.

I began printing out the articles and placing them in clear plastic sheets. When I had some collected I found a white vinyl binder and placed them inside. On the net I found a series of photos of a rock that someone painted with an American flag and the MIA/POW flag as well as some quotations. The scene with the quote,"All Gave Some, Some Gave All", I copied in color and placed on the cover. The scene of the steel cross and flags at the WTC I placed on the back cover. (My son took the latter photo when he was in New York earlier in the year. Additionly I placed a small US flag and California State flag patches inside on one of the pages.

This past Saturday my wife and I drove to Livingston, California and met the parents and older brother, who is an NCO in the US Navy. I knew that the military is sometimes playing Taps on a tape machine or bugle insert that is replacing live buglers. I offered the services of another Vietnam vet and myself to play Taps if the government could not do it. The brother who is a 10 year Navy man said that the family had been assured that a live bugler would be there.

My mother in Oregon had given me some money to buy of couple of 18" US flags to give to a couple of vets of my choosing at the Yountville Veterans Home. I called her and asked if it would be OK to give the parents a flag, since the one they were to receive at the funeral would be placed in a box with PFC Lau's medals and ribbons. When I gave the mother the flag and told her that it wass from my mother she started weeping and clutched the small flag to her chest.

On Veteran's Day, the 11th my wife and I went to Livingston for the parade in honor of all veterans and dedicated to PFC Lau. Stevenson is a small town but it represents the heartland of this great country. I took digital photos to add to the album I was making for the parents. I met the Chief of Police who is a Vietnam vet also. I met the marines that carried the rifles in the color guard, and the sailors that carried the colors. I met a major in the air force and a number of veterans from WW2, Korea, Vietnam, Gulf One and the current situation in the ME.

Yesterday evening I went to the funeral parlor to pay my respects before the Rosary was held. There were about 400 in attendance. As I left the scene a female reporter and a cameraman were on the corner. The reporter asked if I was a veteran, (maybe she saw my two rows of ribbons on my vest). I said yes, I was in Vietnam 1965/66. She started asking some rather benign questions like why was I there ?,(to pay my respects to another veteran) and why? (it was the least I could do). Then she asked some quesrions , expecting me to bash the POTUS. Sher asked if we should be in Iraq? My answer: It had to be done sooner or later and we should have completed the job in 1991. She asked some more stuff but could not get me tocondemn the president or the war in the ME. Later on the TV they spelled my name wrong and only used the 12 second snippet where I said I was there to pay my respects.

Today my wife and I went to the service at the Turlock Memorial Park. There was a full firing squad uncluding a couple of relief personnel, a bugler, a pallbearer detail, and several others posted around in inconspicous places. ( I thoght they might be there for backup if some demonstrators showed up. There was a full bird colonel, two captains, a first sergeant, a master sgt., at least 5, SFC's, a staff sgt. a buck sgt. and a number of specialist's 4th class. I even spotted a Sp/6., also a couple of PFC's. The CHP had 8 officers in a formation as well.

The service was very formal and went off w/o a hitch. The pallbears folded the flag and the one in charge made sure the folded flag was properly tucked in so that it would fit the special display box that it was presented in. On the inside lid were the insignia of rank, the ribbons on two rows. She had been awarded the Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for which the orders were read by a female enlisted WAVE.

The priest read the service in Spanish, her brother-in-law read a poem in English and Spanish. The volley had been fired and te Taps played already. The mother was very distraught of course and the aunt collapsed briefly. It was hard to watch all the grief and my wife and I went home, choosing not to go to the VFW hall for the luncheon.

Having been to a number of military and police funerals over the years I still cannot get used to these things and knowing that some of my friends names are on the wall in Dee Cee does not help matters either. I suppose some psychobabble specialist would call it "Survivor Guilt", for having made it home in one piece from Vietnam. All I know is that I am all for never having any more wars, but that will not happen until the Second Coming of Christ.

If anybody cares to read anything about the event and see a photo of PFC Lau, do a google search using her full name. PFC Karina S. Lau. She was 20 years old, two years out of high school and played 10 musical instruments as well as having a beautiful singing voice.


When I was 20 I hjad just about completed my first hitch in the army back in 58. I pray that the draft does not come since we have a 25 year old son that I would rather did not have to enter the service. He is already living overseas and attending school there.

US Army and USAF 1956 to 1966 (Two hitches in the army seperated by a stint in the air farce)
:cool:

[P95Carry]

Phil - thank you Sir for taking the trouble to write that up ....... :)

[SemperFi83]

Semper Fi '83-'92