Red Shirt Friday: WO Patrice Vincent and Cpl Nathan Cirillo

Statement from Cpl Branden Stevenson (Cpl Cirillo's best friend and fellow Guard at the War Memorial that day.

Wednesday Hero

This post was suggested by Michael


Cpt. Joseph O'Callahan 58 years old from Worcester, Mass
Naval Reserve Chaplain Corps, USS Franklin
May 14, 1905 - March 18, 1964




From Cpt. O'Callahan's Medal Of Honor citation:


For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as chaplain on board the U.S.S. Franklin when that vessel was fiercely attacked by enemy Japanese aircraft during offensive operations near Kobe, Japan, on 19 March 1945. A valiant and forceful leader, calmly braving the perilous barriers of flame and twisted metal to aid his men and his ship, Lt. Comdr. O'Callahan groped his way through smoke-filled corridors to the shells, rockets, and other armament. With the ship rocked by incessant explosions, with debris and fragments raining down and fires raging in ever-increasing fury, he ministered to the wounded and dying, comforting and encouraging men of all faiths; he organized and led firefighting crews into the blazing inferno on the flight deck; he directed the jettisoning of live ammunition and the flooding of the magazine; he manned a hose to cool hot, armed bombs rolling dangerously on the listing deck, continuing his efforts, despite searing, suffocating smoke which forced men to fall back gasping and imperiled others who replaced them. Serving with courage, fortitude, and deep spiritual strength, Lt. Comdr. O'Callahan.



You can read more about Cpt. O'Callahan here

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives just so that we may get to enjoy our freedom. For that I am proud to call them Hero.


Those Who Say That We're In A Time When There Are No Heroes, They Just Don't Know Where To Look


Wounded Warrior Project - Because So Many Have Come Back With Injuries, Seen And Unseen
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.

Videos:UK Troops leave Helmand - for the last time?

From the MoD:

British troops stood shoulder-to-shoulder with colleagues from the United States and Afghanistan to witness the Union Flag and Stars and Stripes lowered for the last time at the Bastion-Leatherneck complex. The ceremony marked the end of operations for Regional Command (Southwest), a UK and US coalition command under the umbrella of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force. Read more here. In the picture, Captain Matthew Clark RN, Deputy Commander of Joint Force Support, folds the lowered Union Flag with Camp Bastion's final Garrison Sergeant Major Warrant Officer Class 1 John Lilley. [Picture: Sergeant Obi Igbo RLC, Crown copyright]

UK ends combat operations in Helmand
26 October 2014

UK Armed Forces end combat operations in Helmand, paving the way for the final transfer of security to the Afghan National Security Forces.

As they have on the battlefield, British troops stood shoulder-to-shoulder with colleagues from the United States and Afghanistan to witness the Union Flag and Stars and Stripes lowered for the last time at the Bastion-Leatherneck complex.
The ceremony marks the end of operations for Regional Command (Southwest), a UK and US coalition command under the umbrella of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). Other contributing nations have included Denmark, Estonia, Georgia, Tonga, Jordan and Bosnia.
The UK has had a military presence in Afghanistan since October 2001, when troops deployed as part of the NATO response to the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the US....
[...]
Brigadier Rob Thomson, Deputy Commander of RC (SW) and the senior UK officer in Helmand, said:
The formal end of UK combat operations in Afghanistan marks the final step in a deliberate, responsible and measured handover to the ANSF. They are more than ready to take on responsibility for security in Helmand. We can be extremely proud of the part we have played in building a capable, credible and confident Afghan force.

They have the baton, they are ready, and I am struck by their courage and commitment.

We have travelled some hard yards in Helmand alongside our coalition allies, and every single service and branch of the Armed Forces has been part of that effort. We will never forget the 453 soldiers, sailors and airmen who have made the ultimate sacrifice....

There is much more here. 



Any student of history knows that this was not the first time that the British had been in Afghanistan, but this time, according to Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, WILL be the last. As the flags are lowered over Helmand, comes this from Daily Mail:

We'll never send British troops back to fight in Afghanistan, pledges Fallon as soldiers make on last assault on the Taliban
27 October 2014

[...]  


British combat troops will not be deployed in Afghanistan again ‘under any circumstances’, the Defence Secretary has vowed.



Michael Fallon said yesterday: ‘We are not going to send combat troops back into Afghanistan. We’ve made that very, very clear. Under any circumstances, combat troops will not be going in there.’



His comments came as British troops were forced to make one last assault on Taliban positions as they prepared for withdrawal from Camp Bastion. Royal Artillery gunners fired 105mm shells from the base into enemy positions several miles outside the wire....

There are many more pictures - and videos - here.  Go look.


Also from the Daily Mail:

They served their country with honour and courage – and 453 paid the ultimate price. But, after 13 years of bloodshed, there will be no memorial in Afghanistan to mark the troops’ sacrifice.


The lives of the young Britons killed fighting the Taliban had been commemorated on memorial walls in Camp Bastion, but as the UK’s campaign in the country ended yesterday, it was confirmed they had been dismantled.


A source said: ‘There is no memorial left in Afghanistan.’ The Army insisted the decision was not because of fears the memorials would be defaced or destroyed. But top-ranking soldiers and relatives of those who were killed said there was an obvious risk they would be ‘desecrated’ by a resurgent Taliban.






[...]

Much more - with pictures - here.


Yes, the US Marines left too:  Last US Marines left their Afghanistan headquarters.

We WILL remember them...
 

Video: Highway of Heroes for Cpl Nathan Cirillo

ATTENTION !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cpl. Nathan Cirillo. Leaving Ottawa today at 11:00 approx., eta Hamilton 2:00 PM via Highway of Hero's (401)


"In a show of gratitude from right across the land.....
It's our turn to stand on guard for thee."

Video: For Cpl Nathan Cirillo: We Rise Again

When the waves roll on over the waters
And the ocean cries
We look to our sons and daughters
To explain our lives
As if a child could tell us why

That as sure as the sunrise
As sure as the sea
As sure as the wind in the trees
We rise again in the faces
of our children
We rise again in the voices of our song
We rise again in the waves out on the ocean
And then we rise again

When the light goes dark with the forces of creation
Across a stormy sky
We look to reincarnation to explain our lives
As if a child could tell us why

That as sure as the sunrise
As sure as the sea
As sure as the wind in the trees
We rise again in the faces
of our children
We rise again in the voices of our song
We rise again in the waves out on the ocean
And then we rise again

We rise again in the faces
of our children
We rise again in the voices of our song
We rise again in the waves out on the ocean
And then we rise again

Some Gave All: Cpl Nathan Cirillo

Cpl. Nathan Cirillo, fatally shot at National War Memorial

[...]
The soldier has been identified as Cpl. Nathan Cirillo, 24, a reservist based out of Hamilton, Ontario.

“Today a member of Hamilton’s own Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders was killed while performing the duties of a sentry at the National War Memorial,” Hamilton Mayor Bob Bratina said in a statement....

There is more, here......

For now, this is all I will have.

Today is a day to honour Cpl Cirillo....

Wednesday Hero

Maj. Charles Watters40 years old from Jersey City, New Jersey
Army Chaplain Corps, 173rd Support Battalion
January 17, 1927 - November 19, 1967



From Maj. Watters's Medal Of Honor citation:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Chaplain Watters distinguished himself during an assault in the vicinity of Dak To. Chaplain Watters was moving with one of the companies when it engaged a heavily armed enemy battalion. As the battle raged and the casualties mounted, Chaplain Watters, with complete disregard for his safety, rushed forward to the line of contact. Unarmed and completely exposed, he moved among, as well as in front of the advancing troops, giving aid to the wounded, assisting in their evacuation, giving words of encouragement, and administering the last rites to the dying. When a wounded paratrooper was standing in shock in front of the assaulting forces, Chaplain Watters ran forward, picked the man up on his shoulders and carried him to safety. As the troopers battled to the first enemy entrenchment, Chaplain Watters ran through the intense enemy fire to the front of the entrenchment to aid a fallen comrade. A short time later, the paratroopers pulled back in preparation for a second assault. Chaplain Watters exposed himself to both friendly and enemy fire between the two forces in order to recover two wounded soldiers. Later, when the battalion was forced to pull back into a perimeter, Chaplain Watters noticed that several wounded soldiers were lying outside the newly formed perimeter. Without hesitation and ignoring attempts to restrain him, Chaplain Watters left the perimeter three times in the face of small arms, automatic weapons, and mortar fire to carry and to assist the injured troopers to safety. Satisfied that all of the wounded were inside the perimeter, he began aiding the medics ... applying field bandages to open wounds, obtaining and serving food and water, giving spiritual and mental strength and comfort. During his ministering, he moved out to the perimeter from position to position redistributing food and water, and tending to the needs of his men. Chaplain Watters was giving aid to the wounded when he himself was mortally wounded. Chaplain Watters' unyielding perseverance and selfless devotion to his comrades was in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Army.






You can read more about Maj. Charles Watters here

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives just so that we may get to enjoy our freedom. For that I am proud to call them Hero.

Those Who Say That We're In A Time When There Are No Heroes, They Just Don't Know Where To Look

Wounded Warrior Project - Because So Many Have Come Back With Injuries, Seen And Unseen
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.

Rest In Peace Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent

Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, 53, has been identified as the soldier who died a day after being run down in Quebec by a man who had embraced radical Islam.

From the Toronto Star:

Joanna Smith  21 October, 2014
[...]

 OTTAWA — Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, 53, had been a member of the Canadian military for 28 years when he died Monday after being hit by a car driven by a suspected homegrown terrorist.

 [...]


 The Canadian military said Tuesday Vincent had been a member of Joint Personnel Support Unit at the Integrated Personnel Support Centre in St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., an office run by the departments of defence and veterans affairs that help injured veterans and current soldiers, as well as their families, access support services from the federal government.


Vincent had been with the regular force since May 1986.

His career as a firefighter brought him to military bases across the country, serving in Halifax, Valcartier, Que., Montreal, Trenton, North Bay, Edmonton, Comox, B.C. and Esquimalt, B.C....

Prayers for all who know and love WO Vincent.


Rest In Peace, Sir....

Updated - Canada: Soldier in Quebec 'hit and run' dies

'possible terrorist attack'?????????

From CBC:

Incident involving 2 soldiers raised in House of Commons as 'possible terror attack'

CBC News Posted: Oct 21, 2014 6:20 AM ET

One of two soldiers wounded in a hit and run involving a "radicalized" 25-year-old man in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., has died, provincial police say.

Martin Rouleau, the 25-year-old suspect, was fatally shot on Monday after hitting two soldiers in a parking lot in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, a city about 40 kilometres southeast of Montreal.

The family of the soldier who died asked that his name not be released...

[...]

The RCMP said Rouleau was known to provincial and federal law enforcement agencies. They suspected he had become radicalized after converting to Islam about a year ago.

Radio-Canada reported that Rouleau's Facebook page identifies him as Ahmad LeConverti (Ahmad the Converted).

His Facebook page shows a young man who had become more and more radicalized over time.

Propaganda videos and other materials admiring jihad — or “holy war” against enemies of Islam — graced his Facebook profile page. His increasingly extreme religious views and behaviour had attracted the attention of an integrated national security team....

Check out the video and the Facebook page photo of this terrorist, on CBC here.


From JihadWatch:

Canadian who ran down two soldiers and charged police with knife was a “radicalized” convert to IslamRobert Spencer
20 October 2014


This French-language QMI Agency piece has the information that he said he was acting “in the name of Allah.” And so yet another convert to Islam misunderstands his peaceful religion, turns traitor, and attacks the soldiers of his own nation, like U.S. Army Sergeant Hasan Akbar and so many others. Yet no one would dare suggest that mosques institute programs to teach converts to reject this understanding of Islam. That would be “Islamophobic.” As a society we have to put the loaded gun in our mouth and fire, and hope that the gun will somehow not go off — to do anything else would be “racist” and “bigoted.”

“Two soldiers struck in Quebec hit-and-run,” by Daniel Leblanc and Steven Chase, The Globe and Mail, October 20, 2014:

Two Canadian soldiers in Quebec have been injured in a hit-and-run that is being investigated as a possible terror attack.

Police in Quebec are unsure whether the soldiers were deliberately targeted in the incident, but sources with knowledge of the investigation told The Globe and Mail that the suspect was known to both intelligence and law-enforcement officials before Monday’s hit-and-run in St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, less than an hour outside of Montreal.

The sources said the 25-year-old male was believed to be an Islamic convert who had been radicalized.

More here.

UPDATE:

 Canada car killer's passport seized

Martin Couture-Rouleau, hit-and-run driver, arrested by RCMP in July

ANALYSIS :Has Ottawa been too slow to take on radicalized Canadians?


PAY ATTENTION, folks.  What happens 'over there' IS here.

Prayers for all who know and love these Canadians.

Keith Fairben: On your birthday

Thinking of you on your birthday today - and every day.


(One of my favourite pictures - courtesy of the Fairben family, of course!)




(from Prayer for America: ...Giuliani once again praised the rescue and response personnel who converged on downtown Manhattan in an effort to save lives. They will, he said, "occupy a permanent and sacred place in our history and in our hearts."...[emphasis mine] Here.)

Did you ever know that you're my hero?
You're everything I wish I could be.
I can fly higher than an eagle,
'cause you are the wind beneath my wings.

To Keith, Diane and Ken: You ARE the wind beneath my wings..





Keith G. Fairben: Still Riding

Keith G. Fairben: A Beloved American son

9/11: Justice postponed - again

As I noted a while back, the ongoing Military Tribunal related to Khalid Shaikh Mohammad et al was scheduled for two days of Hearings this past week.

Then comes this:

The hearings scheduled for 16 and 17 October 2014, have been cancelled. The next hearings in U.S. v. KSM et al (2) are scheduled for 15-19 December 2014; 9-13 February and 16-20 February 2015.

I have been unable to find any reason given for this delay, but will continue to monitor.

Video: Canada's Coast Guard names vessel to honour CPT Nichola Goddard

Captain Nichola Goddard is a Canadian HERO.

From CTV News:

Captain Goddard: Coastguard vessel named for first Canadian woman killed in Afghanistan combat


The Canadian Press
 October 15, 2014 
HALIFAX -- The mother of the first Canadian woman to be killed in Afghanistan in a combat role says she feels her daughter would be proud to have a coast guard vessel named after her.

Sally Goddard of Charlottetown attended a Halifax ceremony today marking the official acceptance of the Captain Goddard into the coast guard's fleet.

She says her daughter would have seen it as an honour for all of the Canadian Forces personnel who were killed during the conflict...

Much more here.

From Valour Canada, where you need to go and learn more about how CPT Goddard LIVED.

ALWAYS remembered. ALWAYS honoured.

Bergdahl investigation political????

Yep, that IS a rhetorical question, of course..

From Stars and Stripes we get this:

Bergdahl investigation finished
By Sig Christenson

San Antonio Express-News

October 10, 2014

SAN ANTONIO (MCT) — The Army said Thursday it has completed an investigation into Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's disappearance from a base in Afghanistan five years ago.

The report by Brig. Gen. Kenneth Dahl is being reviewed by commanders, but is not being released, Army spokesman Wayne Hall said.

Hall said the review process likely would be lengthy, and that “the Army's priority is ensuring that our process is thorough, factually accurate, impartial, and legally correct.”... [emphasis mine]

Lots more here.  Be sure to check out the links over there, too...

"...process is thorough, factually correct, impartial and legally correct."

I know I'm not alone in wondering how 'impartial' this will all be.  Politics, more than anything else, in my opinion, is the driving force behind this.


Take a look.  Pay attention!!!

<

Wednesday Hero

This post was suggested by SJ



George H. Kirk, Sr.82 years old
3rd Marine Division
May 25, 1917 - October 28, 1999




George Kirk, Sr. was a Marine and a Navajo Code Talker who passed away in 1999. Recently his uniform was set to go up for auction but thankfully Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly heard about it and was able to get it returned to the tribe.






You can read more about this story here

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives just so that we may get to enjoy our freedom. For that I am proud to call them Hero.

Those Who Say That We're In A Time When There Are No Heroes, They Just Don't Know Where To Look

Wounded Warrior Project - Because So Many Have Come Back With Injuries, Seen And Unseen

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.

SSG Brian Cowdrey: ALWAYS Remembered

February 2010 during Operation Moshtarak - Brian providing aid to wounded Medic Casey Morrison. Brian said on his FB page at the time he shared this picture:"This photo was taken by an AP embed named Brenan Lindsley...if there was ever a guy who could capture those telling moments it was him! Thank you Brenan for sharing our story!"

SSG Brian Cowdrey: "Who shall I send?"

Remembering SSG Cowdrey( Brian) in AFG
Remembering SSG Brian Cowdrey: Family Man
War On Terror News and Brian: Fighting for a life; Fighting to bring home every body he could

For other columns on Brian, put his name in the search bar above.

~ DUSTOFF!~

Always missed.  Always honoured.  NEVER forgotten.

From this Canadian - Thanks!

The second Monday in October is Thanksgiving Day in Canada. I have been discussing with some of my American friends why we celebrate earlier than you. One particular wit even asked me if we also celebrate Christmas earlier than Americans! No! We celebrate that the same day as Christians around the world.

But, I, of course, had to go find out why the difference for this day. I found a lot that makes absolute sense.

Thanksgiving Day Celebration in Canada People of Canada celebrate Thanksgiving on the second Monday in the month of October every year. It is celebrated to thank the Lord Almighty for a bountiful harvest. America however celebrates thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November every year. The reason behind the difference is geographical; autumn season starts earlier in Canada than in America. History of First Canadian Thanksgiving The first Canadian thanksgiving was celebrated on 15th April 1872 to thank the recovery of King Edward VII from serious illness. The next thanksgiving was celebrated after a few years in 1879 on a Thursday. Canada later, had a turbulent time deciding the day of national Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving was celebrated on a Thursday in November between 1879 and 1898. It was later celebrated on a Thursday in October between 1899 and 1904. Thereafter, it was celebrated on a Monday in the month of October. This was between the period of 1908-1921. In later years, thanksgiving came to be celebrated on 'Armistice Day'. This was however, amended in 1931. Finally on January 31, 1957, Parliament announced the second Monday in the month of October as the official 'Thanksgiving Day'. It was declared as "a day of general Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed." Canadian Thanksgiving Celebration The thanksgiving celebrations include parades, customary 'family feast' and 'turkey'. It is a time for sharing, loving and family reunions. The central idea behind the celebration is to be thankful for the past harvest and praying for the coming year.(source)

There is also a very neat kids' site with the history of Canada's Thanksgiving Day, here.


This year, as for the last few, this day holds special poignancy for me. Yes, I absolutely give thanks for all the blessings I have, but my thoughts always stray to members of our Canadian Military family who are right now far from home in Iraq and other places. . I think about the Canadians who have given their lives so that I and my family might be together, safely celebrating this day. As I hug my now grown child, and my grand-babies,  I give a silent thanks to those families who this year will have an empty chair at their family table.

"Thank you" are two of the most over-used words in the English language, but words that I never get tired of saying. Today especially, and as always, I give thanks to every single one of our Canadian heroes who are far from hearth and home. I give thanks to the families whose loved ones left for lands far away to serve their country in the cause for freedom. To all the families, whose precious loved ones will never return home, for this Thanksgiving or any other: I wish I could show each of you the depth of my heart as I "give thanks" to you, today and every day.

Thank you.

Ft Hood terrorist warns Pope Francis

File under "muslim outreach"????????

From JihadWatch:

Fort Hood jihad mass murderer writes “A Warning To Pope Francis, Members Of The Vatican, And Other Religious Leaders Around the World”

Robert SpencerOctober 9, 2014

Will the Pope write him back and explain how “authentic Islam and the proper reading of the Koran are opposed to every form of violence”?
“Fort Hood shooter sends letter to Pope Francis espousing ‘jihad,’” by Catherine Herridge, Fox News, October 9, 2014:

EXCLUSIVE: Convicted Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan has written to Pope Francis espousing “jihad,” in his latest correspondence aligning himself with radical Islam.

Despite efforts by the Defense Department to label the 2009 massacre as “workplace violence,” Hasan has described himself several times, and again in the new letter, using the acronym “SoA,” or “Soldier of Allah.”

Hasan directed his attorney John Galligan to mail the undated, six-page, hand-written letter to the pope. A copy of the letter – titled, “A Warning To Pope Francis, Members Of The Vatican, And Other Religious Leaders Around the World” – was provided by the attorney to Fox News.

Hasan appears to make multiple references to the Koran in the letter, and includes a bulleted list of guidelines for “believers.”...

More excerpts of Hasan's bs here.

AFG: Departing Brit Troops hold vigil at Memorial

From the MoD:

Camp Bastion troops say farewell to memorial wall
9 October 2014
British sailors, soldiers and airmen have conducted a poignant vigil to mark the return of Camp Bastion's memorial wall to the UK. 

 The memorial bears the names of all 453 UK personnel who have died on operations in Afghanistan and has been the focus for commemoration and reflection since it was erected.

 Following the vigil ceremony last weekend it will be transported to the National Memorial Arboretum as the drawdown of UK combat operations nears its conclusion. 

 In a speech at the ceremony Brigadier Rob Thomson, the most senior UK military officer in Helmand province and Deputy Commander of Regional Command (Southwest), reflected on the sacrifice of British troops and those of other nations.... 

 There is much more about this Memorial, and pictures of the ceremony, here.



There is a great series of (copyrighted) pictures of some of the last UK Troops leaving Helmand, at  The Sun (UK).

Wednesday Hero

This post was suggested by Kathi

Sgt. Maj. Jon Cavaiani70 years old from Stanford, California
August 2, 1943 - July 29, 2014





When Sergeant Cavaiani and the remaining platoon members could not halt the enemy advance, he ordered his men to escape while he laid down covering fire. As they ran, the citation said, he "recovered a machine gun, stood up, completely exposing himself to the heavy enemy fire directed at him, and began firing the machine gun in a sweeping motion." Most of his men escaped. Sergeant Cavaiani was severely wounded. He told the PBS series "American Valor" that he had "almost 120 shrapnel holes in me, and a couple of bullet holes." He said he had played dead when enemy soldiers took the hill and then hid in the jungle for more than 10 days before he was captured. He spent 23 months as a prisoner of war, much of that time in solitary confinement. He was released in March 1973.


From Sgt. Maj. Cavaiani's Medal Of Honor citation:


S/Sgt. Cavaiani distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty in action in the Republic of Vietnam on 4 and 5 June 1971 while serving as a platoon leader to a security platoon providing security for an isolated radio relay site located within enemy-held territory. On the morning of 4 June 1971, the entire camp came under an intense barrage of enemy small arms, automatic weapons, rocket-propelled grenade and mortar fire from a superior size enemy force. S/Sgt. Cavaiani acted with complete disregard for his personal safety as he repeatedly exposed himself to heavy enemy fire in order to move about the camp's perimeter directing the platoon's fire and rallying the platoon in a desperate fight for survival. S/Sgt. Cavaiani also returned heavy suppressive fire upon the assaulting enemy force during this period with a variety of weapons. When the entire platoon was to be evacuated, S/Sgt. Cavaiani unhesitatingly volunteered to remain on the ground and direct the helicopters into the landing zone. S/Sgt. Cavaiani was able to direct the first 3 helicopters in evacuating a major portion of the platoon. Due to intense increase in enemy fire, S/Sgt. Cavaiani was forced to remain at the camp overnight where he calmly directed the remaining platoon members in strengthening their defenses. On the morning of 5 June, a heavy ground fog restricted visibility. The superior size enemy force launched a major ground attack in an attempt to completely annihilate the remaining small force. The enemy force advanced in 2 ranks, first firing a heavy volume of small arms automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenade fire while the second rank continuously threw a steady barrage of hand grenades at the beleaguered force. S/Sgt. Cavaiani returned a heavy barrage of small arms and hand grenade fire on the assaulting enemy force but was unable to slow them down. He ordered the remaining platoon members to attempt to escape while he provided them with cover fire. With one last courageous exertion, S/Sgt. Cavaiani recovered a machine gun, stood up, completely exposing himself to the heavy enemy fire directed at him, and began firing the machine gun in a sweeping motion along the two ranks of advancing enemy soldiers. Through S/Sgt. Cavaiani's valiant efforts with complete disregard for his safety, the majority of the remaining platoon members were able to escape. While inflicting severe losses on the advancing enemy force, S/Sgt. Cavaiani was wounded numerous times. S/Sgt. Cavaiani's conspicuous gallantry, extraordinary heroism and intrepidity at the risk of his life, above and beyond the call of duty, were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the U.S. Army.







You can read more about Jon Cavaiani here


These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives just so that we may get to enjoy our freedom. For that I am proud to call them Hero.

Those Who Say That We're In A Time When There Are No Heroes, They Just Don't Know Where To Look

Wounded Warrior Project - Because So Many Have Come Back With Injuries, Seen And Unseen


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.

Ebola: 101st Airborne to Liberia to claim hearts and minds?

(picture: Macleans photo essay)

As I see the increasing numbers of US Troops deploying to Liberia to *fight* the ebola outbreak, I have to ask:  What does that mean?  WHAT is their defined mission in Liberia?  What are their Rules of Engagement? Is this a combat mission?  Humanitarian mission?   If it is 'humanitarian' do our Troops even have fully locked and loaded weapons with which to protect themselves against the freaked out local community?

Of course, if the mission is to claim the hearts and minds, that begs the question:  Does ebola virus even have a heart and mind?  Hey, enquiring non-scientific minds need to know this.  Next question:  what protocols are in place - before our Troops even leave US soil - to protect themselves against this unseen virus?  What inoculations have they been ordered to take, (you know, that they will suffer the consequences of for the next forty years.)  If the care and attention given to our current Iraq and AFG Veterans is any benchmark, the Troops off to Liberia should be worried - very worried - about after-deployment care.

I don't know about you, but when the Mouth In Chief (oh wait, I mean the Commander in Chief - with all due respect, of course) of the US assures us that ebola is extremely unlikely to make it to US shores,  and then have we contacts of the ebola patient in TX on the loose among us, I'm not too confident the government has a frigging clue what it's doing...

Am I a conspiracy theorist who believes this government is engaging in germ warfare on its own citizens?  No, but I DO believe that this government is being less than forthright with us all, with information we NEED TO KNOW.

So many questions, so little time..  In that time, take a look here..

From Stars and Stripes:
101st Airborne soldiers heading to Liberia for Ebola fight

By LOLITA C. BALDOR The Associated PressPublished: October 6, 2014


WASHINGTON — The commander of the Army's 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, says a handful of his soldiers are already in Liberia, and more head there next week to build treatment centers and begin training medical personnel.

Maj. Gen. Gary J. Volesky says his soldiers went through a two days of training with the Center for Disease Control professionals and others to learn about the Ebola threat. He says medical personnel from Fort Detrick, Maryland, will be in Kentucky this week to give soldiers a six-hour training session on protective measures, including how to wear special protection equipment.

He says the soldiers are being told not to shake hands with people in Liberia and to wash their hands frequently.

From 3,000 to 4,000 101st Division soldiers will be going to Liberia.

GO here and check out the related links on this issue....

Do NOT let the government nor msm lull you into a false sense of security on this one.

That old saw of  "I'm from the government and I am here to help you" is more dangerous than ever these days.

[Related:  100-strong army of British military medics will set up Ebola hospital in Sierra Leone to treat doctors and health workers struck by the deadly virus  ]

Syria: About those chemical weapons

Now that Obama put away his red crayon, and the msm has gone on to their next big story du jour,  it would perhaps be easy to forget other issues from months past.  One of those issues?  Syria and their chemical weapons.

From Homeland Security News Wire:

Assad retains secret caches of chemical weapons: Israeli intelligence

1 October 2014


Despite committing to dismantle and give up its chemical weapons – Syria was in possession of the world’s largest chemical weapons stock — President Bashar al-Assad’s regime still maintains a “residual” chemical weapons capacity, consisting of a few tons of the proscribed materials.

Israel’s intelligence community has concluded that the Assad regime has decided to keep this reduced, but still formidable, chemical weapons capability, and has successfully concealed it from the inspectors of the UNchemical weapons watchdog who, a few weeks ago, have declared the chemical disarmament of Syria to be officially complete.

The process of destroying and removing Syria’s chemical weapons began almost a year ago, following international pressure on the Assad regime in the wake of the August 2013 sarin gas attack by Assad forces on a Damascus suburb, an attack which left more than 1,400 dead.

The August 2013 attack was the latest in a series of smaller chemical weapons attacks by Assad’s army on civilians in rebel-held areas, attacks which began in December 2012. Haaretz notes that these early incidents were more or less ignored, and certainly not taken seriously, by the United States and other Western countries. The Israeli intelligence community provided the United States with evidence for a few of these early instances of chemical weapons use – and the head of Israel’s military intelligence referred to these attack in one or two public presentations – but the Obama administration dismissed those claims. President Obama had publicly drawn a “red line” with regard to the use of chemical weapons by Assad, and the administration saw the earlier use of chemical weapons by Assad as too small and localized to trigger a U.S. military retaliation which the president’s red line references promised....

Much more here.

Related:  Video - Obama Warns Syria's Assad Chemical Weapons A 'RED Line'

Heck of a job there, Mr President.

9/11 Justice drags on - update

The Military Commission at GITMO has released an update on the scheduled October hearings:...

Judge Pohl issued an Amended Docketing Order in U.S. v. KSM et al (2).




The hearing in October will take place on 16-17 October 2014



The United States will be represented by the Special Review Team, and the issues to be litigated are all related to AE292, Emergency Joint Defense Motion to Abate Proceedings and Inquire into Existence of Conflict of Interest Burdening Counsel's Representation of Accused.

TX Ebola patient initially released due to tech screw up????

Remember when Obama said that the likelihood of ebola reaching American shores was "extremely low"?????  Take a look:
(source)


 "...we've taken new measures to ensure we are prepared here at home"...

Riiiiiiiiight.  Apparently, not so much..  From Homeland Security News Wire today comes this:

Dallas Ebola patient was sent home as a result of a flaw in software used by many hospitals

6 October 2014



Before Thomas Eric Duncan was placed in isolation for Ebola at Dallas’ Texas Health Presbyterian Hospitalon 28 September, he sought care for fever and abdominal pain three days earlier, but was sent home. During his initial visit to the hospital, Duncan told a nurse that he had recently traveled to West Africa — a sign that should have led hospital staff to test Duncan for Ebola. Instead, Duncan’s travel record was not shared with doctors who examined him later that day. This was the result of a flaw in the way the physician and nursing portions of our electronic health records (EHR).EHR software, used by many hospitals, contains separate workflows for doctors and nurses....

[...]


“Protocols were followed by both the physician and the nurses. However, we have identified a flaw in the way the physician and nursing portions of our electronic health records (EHR) interacted in this specific case,” the hospitalwrote in a statement explaining how it managed to release Duncan following his initial visit.

According to NextGov, EHR software used by many hospitals contains separate workflows for doctors and nurses. Patients’ travel history is visible to nurses, but such information “would not automatically appear in the physician’s standard workflow.” As a result, a doctor treating Duncan would have no reason to suspect Duncan’s illness was related to Ebola.

Roughly 50 percent of U.S. physicians now use EHRs since the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) began offering incentives for the adoption of digital records. In 2012, former HHS chief Kathleen Sebeliussaid EHRs “will lead to more coordination of patient care, reduced medical errors, elimination of duplicate screenings and tests and greater patient engagement in their own care.” Many healthcare security professionals, however, have pointed out that some EHR systems contain loopholes and security gaps that prevent data sharing among healthcare workers.

The New York Times recently reported that several major EHR systems are built to make data sharing between competing EHR systems difficult....

Very interesting article here.

Go read, and ask yourself this question:  Do I trust our government(s) to tell us the truth?  If you are like me, probably not, so do your OWN research.   I have many,  many questions that the msm has not even thought to investigate yet - but the facts really are out there.

Stay tuned and PAY ATTENTION!

[Related:  'Obama's disease' has infested all of government including CDC