A Gift *Heavenly Light*

Mahea
born: September 24, 2008
at 5:04 pm
7 lbs 2 oz
20 inches long

A precious blessing to all.

Obama doesn't want me!

Browsing some of my favourite sites, I came across a little "quiz" via From My Position...(Chuck Z - Major to you...lol)...If you haven't been reading his site, get over there SOON. He is here.

What I found today?

Just one more service I offer:

I'm an embarrassment to Barack!


I only scored 17 on the Obama Test

Soooooo of COURSE, me being me, I had to go check it out lol:

I'm an embarrassment to Barack!


I only scored 16 on the Obama Test

Only now do I see that I was ineligible to even take this test. It says on the bottom of the "page":

Note: this test is only open to U.S. citizens, household pets, made-up names, and fictional characters who are registered to vote and to "undocumented workers" who live in areas where they don't check IDs at polling places.

Oooops! But never mind - I am sure nobody will check my credentials, and that the Obama "truth squads" won't discount me......;)

Say what?

lol..... Found this "make your own Obama logo" via Michelle Malkin here,

It is so simple to create, even the brat can do it..;) Go have fun and make your own, The site for that is here.

Back to regular "serious" stuff..

Oh, and in an ironic "coincidence"...lol. THIS just in from my "imag

inary friend":

From: Obama for America

Subject: Get your official Obama-Biden yard sign



Midnight Tuesday, September 30th, is the financial reporting deadline for this month.

The resources we have on hand going into October will determine our ability to compete in key battleground states.

Your donation today will help fund time-sensitive voter registration and Get Out The Vote operations -- which need resources immediately to be effective.

Make a donation of $15 or more before Tuesday's deadline and you'll receive an official Obama-Biden yard sign.

Your sign will arrive no later than Friday, October 17th, so you'll have plenty of time to show off your support and remind your friends and neighbors to vote for Barack.

Or you can choose to donate $30 or more and receive an Election Day T-shirt.

Your support has never been more important than it is right now.

You'll help build the biggest voter mobilization movement in presidential history.

Thank you for your support,

Obama for America

ROFL....

Obama a "buffoon"??? You decide

Much has been said about Obama's "Me too! Me tooooooooo!" moment about the bracelet McCain mentioned in the debate the other night. We have all heard about Obama needing to read the name, since the fallen heroes name who he supposedly honours on his wrist, was not on the tip of his tongue. I am SURE you all read Master Gunner's thoughts on that. You DID, didn't you? ;)

Comes even more insight on this topic:

Family Told Obama NOT To Wear Soldier Son's Bracelet... Where is Media?

Barack Obama played the "me too" game during the Friday debates on September 26 after Senator John McCain mentioned that he was wearing a bracelet with the name of Cpl. Matthew Stanley, a resident of New Hampshire and a soldier that lost his life in Iraq in 2006. Obama said that he too had a bracelet. After fumbling and straining to remember the name, he revealed that his had the name of Sergeant Ryan David Jopek of Merrill, Wisconsin.

Shockingly, however, Madison resident Brian Jopek, the father of Ryan Jopek, the young soldier who tragically lost his life to a roadside bomb in 2006, recently said on a Wisconsin Public Radio show that his family had asked Barack Obama to stop wearing the bracelet with his son's name on it. Yet Obama continues to do so despite the wishes of the family....

Go read the rest of this at Newsbusters here.

My friend Janet sent me this one, and her email starts with this statement:

"This man is a buffoon.......this proves it!!"

I know what I think..lol. What say you?

Urgent: Protect Military Voting Rights

I have shared a couple of information pierces about the need to ensure ALL military veterans (and active duty servicemen and women) are not denied their rights to vote in the upcoming election. Comes another effort to ensure our military have access to exercising one of those basic rights which they have - and are now still - fighting to protect:

Some Americans watching tonight's Presidential debate may not have the opportunity to cast a vote for their candidate: troops and veterans from Ohio.

Right now, a legal fight in Ohio threatens the right of servicemembers and veterans to cast their votes with absentee ballots. IAVA has filed a brief asking the Ohio Supreme Court to protect the voting rights of all citizens, and we need your support.

Add your name to IAVA's petition, demanding that the state of Ohio count all the votes of servicemembers and vets.

As the law stands now, citizens must be registered to vote for 30 days before the election, which allows voters to register and submit an absentee ballot at the same time, as long as it happens 30 days before the election. A lawsuit brought against the Ohio Secretary of State is trying to prevent the two actions from happening at the same time. If the law is changed, thousands of veterans and active duty troops could be disenfranchised.

Our troops serving overseas could be denied the very freedoms they are fighting so hard to defend. We hope the court in Ohio rejects this last minute, politically-motivated ploy that could complicate the voting process for our veterans and deployed soldiers.

Sign IAVA's petition demanding that the state of Ohio deny this challenge to the law.

This is not a partisan matter. Regardless of who they cast their ballots for, thousands of servicemen and women could find their votes thrown out. We owe these and all servicemembers an absentee voting process that is fair, predictable, and clear. Help fight this threat to our democracy.

Thank you for standing with us.

Sincerely,

Paul Rieckhoff

Iraq Veteran
Executive Director
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America

H/T Mike for this one...:)

Every Day Heroes - Gold Star Mothers

(source)

Gold Star Mother's Day, 2008

A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America

White House News

Throughout our history, the men and women of the Armed Forces have put our Nation's security before their own, doing their duty in the face of grave danger. On Gold Star Mother's Day, we pay solemn tribute to the mothers of the patriots lost serving this great Nation.

Gold Star Mothers inspire our Nation with their deep devotion to family and country. These extraordinary women serve their communities, dedicate their time to helping members of our Armed Forces and veterans, and bring comfort and hope to families whose loved ones laid down their lives in the defense of our liberty. Nothing can compensate for their sacrifice and loss, yet Gold Star Mothers demonstrate tremendous courage and resolve while working to preserve the memory and legacy of all our fallen heroes.

On this day, we honor our country's Gold Star Mothers and remember their sons' and daughters' noble service and great sacrifice. We offer them our deepest gratitude and our most profound respect, and we ask for God's blessings to be upon them and their families.

The Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 115 of June 23, 1936 (49 Stat. 1895 as amended), has designated the last Sunday in September as "Gold Star Mother's Day" and has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in its observance.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim Sunday, September 28, 2008, as Gold Star Mother's Day. I call upon all Government officials to display the flag of the United States over Government buildings on this special day. I also encourage the American people to display the flag and hold appropriate ceremonies as a public expression of our Nation's sympathy and respect for our Gold Star Mothers.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fourth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand eight, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-third.

GEORGE W. BUSH

*************

Beginnings

When the United States entered World War I in 1917, George Vaughn Seibold, 23, volunteered, requesting assignment in aviation. He was sent to Canada where he learned to fly British planes since the United States had neither an air force nor planes. Deployed to England, he was assigned to the British Royal Flying Corps, 148th Aero Squadron. With his squadron, he left for combat duty in France. He corresponded with his family regularly. His mother, Grace Darling Seibold, began to do community service by visiting returning servicemen in the hospitals.

The mail from George stopped. Since all aviators were under British control and authority, the United States could not help the Seibold family with any information about their son.

Christmas Eve, 1918, the postman delivered a package to the Washington, DC residence of George and Grace Seibold. The package was marked, "Effects of Deceased Officer, First Lieutenant George Vaughn Seibold, Attached to the 148th Squadron, BRFC." No other information was provided.

Grace continued to visit hospitalized veterans in the Washington area, clinging to the hope that her son might have been injured and returned to the United States without any identification. While working through her sorrow, she helped ease the pain of the many servicemen who returned so war-damaged that they were incapable of ever reaching normalcy.

Grace Darling Seibold

After months of inquiry, the family received official notice. "George was killed in aerial combat during the heaviest fighting over Baupaume, France, August 26, 1918." His body was never recovered.

Grace, realizing that self-contained grief is self-destructive, devoted her time and efforts to not only working in the hospital but extending the hand of friendship to other mothers whose sons had lost their lives in military service.

She organized a group consisting solely of these special mothers, with the purpose of not only comforting each other, but giving loving care to hospitalized veterans confined in government hospitals far from home.

The organization was named after the Gold Star that families hung in their windows in honor of the deceased veteran.

After years of planning, June 4, 1928, twenty-five mothers met in Washington, DC to establish the national organization, American Gold Star Mothers, Inc.

The success of our organization continues because of the bond of mutual love, sympathy, and support of the many loyal, capable, and patriotic mothers who while sharing their grief and their pride, have channeled their time, efforts and gifts to lessening the pain of others. (There IS more, and you can find that here.)

(here)

July 2, 2006, Kent, NY

Peter Allegretta

In 2002, Peter Allegretta, a USMC veteran and president of the Putnam County Joint Veterans Council (NY) accepted the task of creating a monument to honor Gold Star Mothers. Allegretta’s introduction to Gold Star Mothers was when his childhood friend, Howard Bruckner was killed in Vietnam. The planned monument was to be a stone with a small plaque attached. It would be like any other monument to Gold Star Mothers that dot the countryside since the first monuments of the 1930’s. What happened next is an amazing story. A Vietnam veteran, Fred Waterman met Peter and became interested in the project. Waterman was in the same platoon with Howard Bruckner when Bruckner was killed in Vietnam!! Fred felt the “Mom’s” deserved better than the planned single stone monument; he proposed a grand, classical bronze statue be created to properly honor Gold Star Mothers. It would be the first of its kind, and Waterman knew just the sculptor to do the job. Waterman’s Army buddy, Andrew L. Chernak, who was Bruckner’s replacement in Vietnam, was asked to sculpt the first Gold Star Mothers monument.

The first official meeting of the statue committee was in February 2003, in Carmel, Putnam County NY. Gold Star Mother President, Dorothy Oxendine and Pat Butcher were present. There were two designs submitted for the Gold Star Mother memorial. Chernak’s proposed design was of a WWII mother for two reasons. First, it would eliminate discussion whether or not the statue would be a Vietnam, Korea, or current day mother. Secondly, WWII saw the greatest number of Gold Star Mothers. The statue would be of a mother, tears flowing, looking off to memories of her child. Grief stricken and unsteady, she braces herself with one hand on a plant stand at her side. The hand grasps the Western Union telegram read with disbelief a moment before. The table top has a photo of a serviceman and a flower pot knocked to its side, teetering at the table’s edge. The second design presented by another attendee was a copy of a movie scene with a mother lying on a porch in tears. Chernak’s design was chosen by Dorothy Oxendine for the dignity and strength that co-existed with the grief and sorrow. (go here to read more of this amazing story!)

Peter Allegretta and 2 Gold Star Moms await the unveiling of the Statue.

I do not have enough words to share for all that Gold Star Mothers mean to me. Those Gold Star Mothers I am now blessed to know and count as friends, know exactly what respect, love and gratitude I hold in my heart for each of them.

To me, they ARE - and will always be - MY Every Day Heroes.

Music and Me

The debate: another perspective

The Debate: Barack Obama's Most Important Statement

Why bother weighing in with just one more take on Friday night's Presidential Debate? By now, every conceivable angle has been covered. Predictably, both camps have claimed victories. What could be said that hasn't already been said, and said by more astute pundits than myself?
Well, there is one little thing. One little sentence that sticks out in my mind and just will not go away. One small phrase which Obama uttered that to me has more significance than everything else he stated during this contest. And here it is: "America is the greatest country in the world, but--" But. That's the word that matters, folks. That's the word that more than any other reveals the goals of this candidate. America, he goes on to explain, is not the same country it was when his Kenyan father spoke of America with those high expectations. Children around the world no longer look at America the same way. This, then, would be the sacred crusade of an Obama presidency: to restore that faded luster to our American star. To get people around the world to like us once again. To make it possible for his wife to be truly proud to be an American for the first time in her lifetime. Barack Obama sees it as his mission to make it up to the world for all of America's past transgressions. To make America more universalist.

My God. Where has this man learned his American history? From the Reverend Wrights of this world? Is this what we want? What we need right now? Is this the new America? A regretful America, ashamed of itself and of its history? A humbled America, apologizing to the world for its existence and for its success? Do we really want a more internationalist America, an America more beholden to the world's agenda than to our own? Do we really want to relinquish more of our sacred national identity?

Just ask the poor betrayed Brits how they like their new found internationalism. Their merging of cultures and their loss of their own. Ask the Brits how they feel about the EU and Brussels.

What a President Obama would do about the present financial crisis on Wall Street is important, very important. What a President Obama would do about the emerging Russian Bear, or the crazy Atom Bomb-coveting Iranian Mullahs is very important. His views on the best way to manage the GWOT are extremely important. But, to this particular writer, his stated vision of America and what he wants America to be could very well be the most important issue of them all.

Regardless of your party affiliation, if you feel, as I do, that the United States of America owes no one any apologies, and has every right to promote its own interests and to protect those interests, without interference from any foreign powers or organizations of foreign powers, then we just cannot let this man win the presidency. We cannot give away this great nation of ours this easily. - rg (source)

MORE spin from my "Imaginary friend"

I just finished my first debate with John McCain.

Millions of Americans finally got a chance to see us take on the fundamental choice in this election -- the change we need or more of the same.

I will provide tax cuts for the middle class, affordable health care, and a new energy economy that creates millions of jobs. John McCain wants to keep giving huge tax cuts to corporations, and he offered no solutions for the challenges Americans are facing in their daily lives.

I will end the war in Iraq responsibly, focus on defeating al Qaeda and the Taliban, and restore America's standing in the world after eight years of disastrous policies. John McCain wants an unending commitment in Iraq and fails to recognize the resurgent threat in Afghanistan.

Let's be clear: John McCain is offering nothing but more of the same failed Bush policies at home and abroad that he has supported more than 90% of the time in the Senate.

Americans need change now, and I need your help to get the word out about this movement.

In the coming days, it's going to be up to you to organize locally and reach the voters that are going to decide this election.

Now's the time to make your voice heard.

Please make a donation of $5 or more right now to support this campaign for change:

https://donate.barackobama.com/thedebate

Thank you for all that you're doing,

Barack

"Thank you for all that you are doing." IF he only knew..and the spinning continues.

Master Gunner has "thoughts" :)

Yes! Master Gunner watched the debate, and he is pissed off (well, as pissed off as he gets...lol) You really MUST go read why. THEN, tell me if you are as mad as I am..

You know the link: here.

The Debate Is On- Live Blogging The Presidential Debate

From Wake Up America:

The McCain statement via Politico:

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) announces: "The McCain campaign is resuming all activities and the senator will travel to the debate this afternoon. Following the debate, he will return to Washington to ensure that all voices and interests are represented in the final agreement, especially those of taxpayers and homeowners.

More at YouDecide 2008.

I will be live blogging the presidential debate tonight over at DJ, along with Editor in Chief, Chris Hogg, so please join us!!!

This will be the link, it will be activated at 8:45 p.m.

For ALL the details on this go to Wake Up America here.

And, in a timely "coincidence, lol...I found this about Obama:

Quote of the Day - Friday September 26

He's still a senator, right?

FSM: Quote of the Day

“As I said before, I think that one of the things we have to determine is how we can be most helpful. It’s my sense that the most helpful thing we can do right now is, uh, to let everyone know this is a sufficiently important problem. I can be helpful, and I am prepared to be anywhere, anytime. So, uh, I think the message is, if I can be helpful, I am prepared to be there at any point.”

Sen. Barack Obama

On the campaign trail

' Nuff said - or NOT!!! That is from Family Security Matters here.

It's the end of the world...

From my original milblog home - Tanker Bros - comes Master Gunner:

Friday, September 26, 2008

The World Is Upside Down...

I was just listening to some music, and R.E.M.'s hit, "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)", took me by surprise.

As Michael Stipe is rattling off a list of world events at breakneck pace, then careens into his chorus, I can't help but think of the sorry, topsy-turvy state of our world as Americans.

And I am frightened.

Yeah, a two-time combat vet is literally petrified with fear, and not at guns or rockets, mortars or IEDs. No, I fear the unknown.

Our culture is in complete shambles: we have lost any and all sense of personal accountability in our society....

As always, Master Gunner tells it like it is. Go NOW and read the rest here.

HOO-frickin-AAAH!

B*N*S*N1

KIRKUK — More than 3,000 Iraqis, including 58 women, joined the ranks of the Kirkuk province’s police force during a graduation ceremony held Tuesday at the Kirkuk Police Academy. Referring to the unprecedented number of graduates, Maj. Gen. Jamal Thaker Baker, the Kirkuk provincial police chief, hailed the moment as “an historic event for the people of the Kirkuk province.” “This is the direct result of the combined efforts of our Coalition friends and the Ministry of the Interior,” Baker said. Baker pointed out the number of high-ranking Multi-National Division - North leaders in the audience, including U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Mark P. Hertling, commanding general, MND-North; Brig. Gen. James C. Boozer Sr., deputy commanding general-operations MND-North; Brig. Gen. Tony Thomas, assistant division commander-support MND-North; and Col. David Paschal, commander, 1st Brigade, 10th Mountain Division. Baker said he considers these men to be among a unique brotherhood. He credited the recent gains in security throughout the province to this brotherhood, whose main concern is for the people of the Kirkuk province and providing “security and stability in this region for them.”

Read more... (here)

B*N*S*N2

Hispanic Americans in the U.S. Army

By army.mil

Hispanic-Americans have a proud record of military service, dating all the way back to the Revolutionary War. They defended America with unwavering valor and honor. We celebrate their "Call to Duty" during Hispanic Heritage Month, which began on Sept. 15. It's the anniversary of independence for five Latin American countries—Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico declared its independence on Sept. 16, and Chile on Sept. 18.

• Related Links:
• Hispanic Americans in the U.S. Army

Check out this link for a slide show of the contributions Hispanic-Americans have made to the US military.

B*N*S*N3

Smiling face...

Photo by Spc. Charles W. Gill
September 25, 2008

A young Iraqi girl shakes the hand of a Soldier at the Neighborhood Activities Center in the Gazaliyah district, Baghdad, Iraq, Sept. 21. The Soldier is assigned to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division.(source)

One picture says a thousand words!

B*N*S*N4

Iraqi Soldiers with 3rd Battalion, 30th Brigade Iraqi Army, deliver boxes of humanitarian aid to 232 families at the displaced person Camp just south of Najaf, Sept. 23, 2008. Photo by Capt. Geoffrey Varell, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division Public Affairs.

Humanitarian Aid Delivered to Hundreds of Displaced Families
Thursday, 25 September 2008 By Staff Sgt. Michel Sauret
3rd Infantry Division


FOB KALSU — Members of the Iraqi security forces delivered humanitarian aid supplies to an Iraqi displaced persons camp south of Najaf, with the help of Coalition forces and the Najaf mayor, Sept. 23.

Iraqi Soldiers belonging to the 3rd Battalion, 30th Brigade delivered the supplies from the newly-opened Najaf InternationalAirport with the help of the Najaf Provincial Reconstruction Team and the 30th Military Transition Team.

“Lt. Col. Salah [commander of the 3/30th Iraqi Army Bde.] did an outstanding job not only at distributing the items, but moving them from the airport to the camp and providing security along the route and at the camp,” said Maj. Anthony Campbell, 30th Iraqi Army Military Transition Team chief. “It illustrated the ability of the Iraqi Air Force, Iraqi Army and Iraqi Police to work together to assist these 232 displaced families.”

Approximately 4,000 people make up the families at the camp; they received shoes, sports suits, buckets, walkers, crutches and wheelchairs. Even after the distribution, there were still enough supplies remaining to help other displaced families elsewhere.

“The last two days’ operation to bring humanitarian aid to the nearby Iraqi displaced persons camp was a huge success,” said Campbell, of Colorado Springs, Colo.

The supplies were donated by a religious nonprofit organization in the U.S.

“The department PRT leader [Fred Fronteneau] did an incredible amount of work to get these supplies here,” added Campbell...(source)

Every soldier's vote counts this election

From my inbox comes this important information:

Election Process Made Easier for Military and Overseas Voters with the
Launch of New Ballot Tool


Washington, DC - 09/15/2008 - An estimated six million Americans who are
members of the military or live overseas have a new way to ensure their
vote for president counts this November, according to experts speaking
at a high-level summit on military and overseas voters. Attended by
members of Congress, secretaries of state and other election officials,
"Democracy at a Distance: A Summit to Make Voting Work for Military and
Overseas Voters" was convened by the Pew Center on the States, in
collaboration with the JEHT Foundation.

At the summit, Pew and the Overseas Vote Foundation launched a new
online tool that allows voters to complete the Federal Write-In Absentee
Ballot (FWAB) more easily and with fewer errors. This tool can be used
by Americans covered under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee
Voting Act who have requested an absentee ballot from election officials
but have not yet received it.

The need to help military and overseas voters is supported by a new
bipartisan Tarrance/Lake poll commissioned by the Pew Center on the
States and released at the summit. It found 96% of Americans believe
it's important that these voters get the chance to participate and vote
in U.S. elections. The poll results also show that 81% of Americans
favor creating a uniform national set of rules for military and overseas
voters.

The new FWAB tool, available at www.overseasvotefoundation.org, provides
an immediate solution for registered voters whose ballots are late or
lost in transit. The site offers easy access to the "Vote-Print-Mail"
system.

"Military and overseas voters do not share an equal opportunity to
vote," said Michael Caudell-Feagan, director of Make Voting Work, a
project of the Pew Center on the States. "According to research from the
U.S. Election Assistance Commission, only one-third of the nearly one
million ballots mailed to these voters were cast or counted in the 2006
general election. FWAB is a powerful tool for these voters."

"It is unacceptable in this day and age that administrative hurdles
should impede the counting of overseas military and civilian votes,"
said Nicole Gordon, vice president of the JEHT Foundation, which has
supported the Overseas Vote Foundation in efforts to partner with states
to facilitate the registration process for overseas voters. "The launch
of the FWAB tool is a significant step in easing and modernizing this
outdated process."

The FWAB tool works by matching users' 9-digit zip code for their U.S.
residence to their voting district. The system automatically presents
candidate lists for federal races in one's district. Voters select their
candidates for office and then download, print, sign and send the FWAB
into the local election office.

"Through our help desk, I've heard thousands of stories from voters who
have been frustrated during presidential campaigns as they anxiously
waited for their absentee ballots to arrive," said Susan
Dzieduszycka-Suinat, President and CEO of Overseas Vote Foundation. "The
new FWAB tool replaces that worry with an immediate, user-friendly,
online and secure process that overseas and military voters from all 50
states and the District of Columbia can use."

For more information about the challenges facing overseas voters, visit
pewcenteronthestates.org and download "Military and Overseas Citizen
Voting Project," an overview developed by the Pew Center on the States.

Make Voting Work, a project of the Pew Center on the States, seeks to
foster an election system that achieves the highest standards of
accuracy, accessibility, efficiency and security. The initiative
examines the most pressing election problems, and undertakes and
evaluates pilot projects and experiments designed to address them. This
research will inform our efforts to identify effective solutions through
changes in policies, practices and technology.

The Pew Charitable Trusts applies the power of knowledge to solve
today's most challenging problems. Our Pew Center on the States
identifies and advances effective policy approaches to critical issues
facing states. Online at pewcenteronthestates.org.

The JEHT Foundation was established in April 2000. Its name stands for
the core values that underlie the Foundation's mission: Justice,
Equality, Human dignity and Tolerance. The Foundation focuses on
criminal and juvenile justice, international justice, and fair and
participatory elections. Working directly with states, in some cases
in-depth, is a key part of the Foundation strategy to implement
practical change related to its mission.

JEHT's Fair and Participatory Elections program promotes the integrity
and fairness of democratic elections in the United States. The
Foundation works with state and other government officials and entities,
researchers, and non-partisan reformers to insure technical integrity of
elections by professionalizing the administration of elections,
insulating them from partisan political control, and supporting
independent structures to oversee elections and related functions.(source)

H/T Jane

Eddie Jeffers: Eternal

..."But my son doesn’t want to be remembered sadly. He would want us all to be smiling, to remember him skateboarding, working at Wendy’s, playing in his band ‘Fighting the Vanna White Influence," she said. "And that he liked beer and hated drinking girls. He loved his wife Stephanie ... And he wanted children - he was going to try to go stateside as a recruiter after his tour was over in January. He was the oldest of six children, and had a stepsister." (source)

Those are the words that Eddie Jeffers' mum, Tina, said about her beloved son one year ago. At that time, many wrote about Eddie. If you don't know Eddie, you really should take the time to get to know this remarkable young American.

Knee Deep in the Hooah has a piece up which links to Gazing at the Flag.

Hope Rides Alone, Remembering Sgt. Eddie Jeffers

Posted on September 24th, 2008 In my own particular idiom Claire

Gazing at the Flag has posted this wonderful tribute and memorial at VA Joe’s for Sgt. Jeffers on the one year mark of his death. I wanted to cross post it here, and encourage everyone of you to read the stories linked to below. Keep Sgt. Jeffers memory alive by sharing his words with others. Please say a prayer for his family, and keep them in your prayers as they live with this loss every moment. Any messages left for his family can be left in the comment section and I will forward them to GAF who can forward them on to the family.

Find that here. You will also find links there for some of the original postings. I also wrote about - and to...lol - Eddie at the time. On Tanker Bros, you can find my pieces about Eddie here, here , here.

The last link there is a piece by Eddie's dad, Dave, and if you read nothing else today, THAT one is worth the time.

As Eddie proved, his own words are timeless; his words will always remain part of his eternal legacy. No words that I could ever write, could do justice to this son, brother, husband, friend, writer, warrior, angel.

Today, during the crazy political shenanigans, spare a moment to give thanks for men like Eddie Jeffers and his family.

Do Not Weep For Me
Do not weep for me, for I have lived...
I have joined my hand with my fellow's hands,
to leave the planet better than I found it.

Do not weep for me, for I have loved and been loved by
my family, by those I love who loved me back.
For I never knew a stranger, only friends.

Do not weep for me.
When you feel the ocean spray upon your face,
I am there.
When your heart beats faster at the dolphin's leaping grace,
I am there.
When you reach out to touch another's heart,
as now I touch God's face,
I am there.
Do not weep for me. I am not gone.
- Anon

As Eddie's dad said on his site last year, in his post titled Hope Rides Eternal:

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelation 21:4)(source)

Wednesday Hero

Click Image For Full SizeYeoman 3rd Class Margret Ueberlauer


Yeoman 3rd Class Margret Ueberlauer hands out toys to HIV infected children during a community relations project at the Camillian Center in Pattaya, Thailand. The USS Abraham Lincoln Strike Group is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility.

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero.
We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived

This post is part of the Wednesday Hero Blogroll. For more information about Wednesday Hero, or if you would like to post it on your site, you can go here.


--
Indian Chris
http://rightwingrightminded.blogspot.com
http://hooahwife.com
Wednesday Hero - Google It

Memo to Obama 2

A reader sent this to me. Full disclosure: In its first version that Carol forwarded to me, this did have someone else's name on it, with instructions to share it everywhere. I asked Carol to verify, and confirm that I could use it. Unable to find the original writer, Carol told me that this writer articulates exactly what she believes. So she adjusted, and added to it, to mirror her own firmly held views. She is not alone as I have heard many echo these concerns. Read on:

My name is Carol Bishop. I am a 50 year old conservative white female. I have followed your campaign closely, including the speeches you and others made at the democratic national convention.

I am respectfully providing you with seven simple (probably shallow) reasons why I could never vote for you. I believe my opinion is shared by many people. While there may not be quite enough to prevent you from becoming president of this nation, I do think there is an awakening to the fact that you are not a (the) messiah that the media and liberal Hollywood entertainers are trying to portray you.

1. I hear your mantra of change, change, change. Yet, you picked a long term, liberal, Washington insider (Joe Biden) to be your running mate. This is NOT change. It is a move that hypocritically refutes the
very thing you supposedly stand for. Your campaign then slammed McCain for picking Sarah Palin, apparently, because she is NOT a Washington insider. She is a maverick who cleaned-up Alaska 's quagmire of political scandals. Which way is it, Barack? Is it okay for you to pick a Washington insider under the mantra of "change", but not okay for John McCain to pick a smart, aggressive, reformer?

2. You have the single most liberal voting record in the senate. This indicates to me and others like me that you may very well be an angry black man seeking to punish our country for sins of a different generation.
I am not racist. I have some biases just like you and every other human alive. Unlike the democratic party who claims to be for the minority (but their record heavily refutes this), I will give any person who truly
needs help, help. I am of Italian German heritage and a second generation American. I have seen the evils of prejudice first hand. However, I have also seen my family throw off the veil of self imposed prejudicial bondage and move ahead. We love our country and do not view ourselves any different than I view myself as a citizen of this country. Your lovely wife so disappointed people like me during this campaign when she stated it was the first time she had ever been proud of this country. She apparently never noticed the massive aid we give dozens of other countries. She apparently never noticed the sacrifice of literally millions of veterans who helped make this country a free nation and helped liberate other nations from brutal dictators such as Adolf Hitler. She apparently does not remember that she attended ivy league universities with scholarship money that ultimately (at least some of it) was paid for by our taxes.

This troubles me more than you know. She is an angry black woman who appears to not like her country very much. * I don't want her representing me to the rest of the world.

3. You claim Christianity but apparently do not realize that the Bible teaches that he who does not work, does not eat. The Bible does not say or even suggest that he who *CANNOT* work, should not eat. Yet, your
liberal policies reward people who are capable of working, but choose to not do so. This bothers me. I know that if you are elected our taxes will spiral upwards.

You should heed the words of Winston Churchill:

"We contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle."

If I like anything about you, it is your campaign promise to balance the federal budget. Unfortunately, we have heard this a huge number of times from a number of different politicians and we realize that when you
energize the very liberal Nancy Pelosi, Robert Byrd, Ted Kennedy, etc, etc, and the many other democrats like them, a balanced budget will never, ever happen on your watch.

4. During your question and answer session with Rick Warren of Saddleback Church your answer concerning the question of where does life begin, stunned me: "Above your pay grade" ???? Does this mean when something bad happens as President of this nation that you are going to look at your salary to determine if you can respond? I am sorry, but this was the most serious gaffe I have seen you make. Frankly, it shows me that you are pandering in the most obvious manner. You will choose your words not from your heart, but from an agenda that I believe is still hidden from the American people.

5. If anything stands out about you it is probably your appeasement mentality. In this era of rampant, radical Islamic extremism and with the latest stunt pulled by the re-energized Russian government, I am
not sure appeasement is healthy. I again refer you to the words of Winston Churchill:

"An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last."

6. You and your party tacitly believe that a 13 or 14 year old girl must have the parents approval to have the school nurse provide them with a Tylenol when they have a headache at school. Yet, this same girl can become pregnant and the school can skirt her off to a clinic and abort the child in her body without the parents knowing or being notified. This scares the hell out of me. You have two little girls. Would you be upset if this happened to them and you were not informed? Then why do you stand for this? It makes no sense to me.

7. My seventh and final point (for now) is your supporters. I have watched the Hollywood entertainers that support you, systematically embrace Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and others like him. I see the continuous
smut and garbage produced by Hollywood , the very people who promote you the most vigorously. It is n ot a positive point to me and others like me to see these over-paid, bizarre, poor examples of human existence fawn over you and push you and your liberal agenda as hard as they do. The way that I see it: When the devil is for you, we should question whether or not we should be against you.

In closing, I just want you to know that you scare me. I cannot vote for you. It is not because of your skin color. It is because these items and many, many others like them. Do not claim that my dislike for you is race
based. It is because I do not feel you have the best interests of this nation - MY nation - at heart.

Respectfully,
Carol M Bishop
South Carolina

*cross-posted everywhere...lol*

Who is Barack Obama?

From Hard Reset here:

I think the points raised in this video are good ones. We cannot afford a president who votes 'present' or crafts his positions based on who he is addressing at the time. Vacillation in this post 9-11 world will lead to one thing, our enemies emboldened and our people attacked. That may sound melodramatic but I believe that if the jihadists see a weak leader in the white house they will redouble their efforts to hit us again. Watch this video and ask your self, do you really want a president who will say one thing to one group and another thing to a different group? (source)

Okay, I can't figure out the YouTube link, but go check it out on Hard Reset ;)

Biden UNDER the bus: This just in...;)

(source)


Mark your calendars. The Obama/Biden ticket is about to "change." I think you all know that I get information from all sorts of places. ;) The following was in an email sent to me by a source I trust totally. They have "cred":

"On or about October 5^th, Biden will excuse himself from the ticket, citing health problems, and he will be replaced by Hillary. This is timed to occur after the VP debate on 10/2. [This will avoid Hillary having to bear an hour of unflattering side-by-side comparison to Sarah Palin.]"

For weeks now, we have all watched as Joe has demonstrated repeated symptoms of that common ailment, foot in mouth disease. We have all seen how 'sick' he has been. But now, it seems poor Joe is having heart problems - specifically 'aneurysm' - or at least that is going to be the official line. That gem comes "from excellent sources within the DNC."

Are YOU going to buy that line? I am so not. I am sure that Obama's VP selection committee thoroughly checked into the medical history of any would-be VP contenders. Given Joe's advanced age and all, (lol) I am thinking that his records may have comprised about 70 pages also..(And yes - after Senator McCain's records being released, does anybody REALLY believe the line that Governor Palin is a "heartbeat" away from the Presidency. Puleeeeeeeze. John McCain will outlive a lot of his dimdem opponents - trust me on this. But I digress.) So, what this latest change is, is Obama and his minions "hoping" that the American people will not look closely into more of the smoke and mirrors that IS their campaign against the American people. Yes, I did say "against."

I have to ask what Joe Biden has been promised for him to fall on his sword. Seriously though, Obama is probably doing Joe a BIG favour removing him from the Obamaland future landscape. THAT is probably better for Joe's heart....

And then we have Hillary. Can we say: "Don't do it, Hillary!!!" Anyone who has watched Hillary and Bill over the years, knows what a political animal Hillary is. When Obama and his committee (of 2 was that? lol) chose Joe instead of Hillary, I kept saying that Hillary was nowhere near shrinking off into the background...
Everything any of us think we know about Hillary, told me that Hillary was nowhere near done on the VP/Presidential trail. So now we have Obama throwing Joe under the bus, scared out of his wits of Sarah Palin. I could rehash all the shenanigans we have seen from the cynical, RACIST (yes, they ARE the racist ones!), CRIMINAL, (Logan Act just for one...)sexist, lying...( about McCain's record on Fannie Mae for just one example.) manipulating, 'in your face' - add your own adjectives - efforts to hoodwink the American public into believing a brand new dawn is upon America.

Don't you buy into this upcoming piece of theatre put on by the Obama boys and girls. I could tell you - again - everything that is wrong with this. I'll spare you, except to ask you to imagine what will happen when America's representative, sent by Obama, goes to 'chat and have tea" wth any of the despots of the planet. Halfway through pouring tea, ("will you be 'mum'?" - a Brit will get the humour there.lol) Obama yanks the rep, and replaces them with another. "Uh, uh , um, oh, let me clarify. What I really mean was..." That'll add to the American credibility worldwide. No wonder places like North Korea are thrilled at the prospect of Obama moving into the White House.

This American election season reminds me of the plot twists and turns of a soap opera. If only the consequences were not so serious. However, I have faith that Americans are smart enough to refuse to accept the cynical political manipulations being foisted upon them at a dizzying pace.

The end of the email I received has a couple of gems that I have to share with you.:

Question: Does this maneuver fall under the category of

Change!

Change we can believe in!

Change we can hardly believe!

Change - because Sarah's whipping my ass!

Change - because picking that Old White Lifelong Liar Guy was a boneheaded blunder!

All of the above?

---

So is this the traditional "October Surprise"? I can just imagine what deals the Clintons are getting - in writing - to go along with this scam! At least her campaign debt will be paid off, - probably with a bonus. Probably Bill gets to be SecState after all. Maybe Chelsea gets to fill Hillary's Senate seat. The possibilities are mind-boggling!

But given what happens to the friends of the Clintons, - Obama should ask for a lot more Secret Service protection!

Ain't Democracy fun!?!

Oh, and just for the record? Don't bother asking me who my source is. And I don't use yahoo mail.

Stay tuned.

"And the wheels on the bus go round and round..." Sing along with me, now!

Every Day Heroes

Meet First Sgt. Karen Henderson:

First Sgt. Henderson was deployed to Iraq for a year-long tour beginning in May 2005. Five months after arriving, Henderson’s command recognized her exceptional abilities, and she was reassigned from an administrative position to help with communications network systems. Upon taking this position, she became the only enlisted advisor at the Iraqi Ministry of Defense. Henderson worked with the Iraqi Director General of Communications to train Iraqis there and at the Iraqi Army division headquarters. In July 2006, Henderson was awarded the Bronze Star for her work.

(source)

Thank you for your service!

Music and Me

Saturday Reading 1

From around the internet, a couple of MUST READS!:

UN resolution outlawing caricatures of Muhammad

Hat tip to Jihad Watch

The assault on Free Speech continues. If this is allowed to pass not only caricatures will become illegal. It will become illegal to speak about the elements of Islam that jihadists use to incite violence and supremacism among Muslims.

ISLAMABAD: A resolution against the publication of blasphemous caricatures of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) in various countries will be presented in the upcoming session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), an Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) representative said on Tuesday.

“The resolution will demand legislation against the publication of blasphemous caricatures of revered personalities and derogatory remarks against religions. It will also demand [sacrilegious] actions be declared a crime,” OIC Secretary General’s Special Representative on Kashmir Ezzat Kamel Mufti told a news conference.

Mufti said a particular group in America and the European Union had been launching attacks against Islam. “However, we should not get emotional and resort to any kind of violence, including suicide bombings,” he said.

How nice that Mufti would remind all not to riot, kill or maim over some cartoons. But let's be realistic. That is exactly what did and what will happen again over these cartoons.

Again and again our freedoms are being whittled away by Islamic extremists and the loony left.

I will not be silenced!

I will not stop my criticism of a backward belief that would destroy my nation and my way of life!

I will not cave into the 7th Century!

So in the interest of Freedom everywhere, I present you The Prophet Mohammad Cartoons:

And yes, of COURSE there is more, much more here. Freedom of speech for thee, but not for me.