Thanksgiving on the Front Lines: No Break for Troops in Afghanistan
By MIKE BOETTCHER -- Zormat, Afghanistan
Nov. 24, 2011
It's business as usual for the Oklahoma National Guard in eastern Afghanistan.
U.S. soldiers and their Afghan police partners show off a Taliban machine gun they captured during a patrol today. They also uncovered a cache of Taliban weapons, all before the Thanksgiving meal.
"We found some IED [Improvised Explosive Device] making materials. Some HME [homemade explosives], and a couple of mortar rounds. It was a good find," one National Guardsman told ABC News.
Americans across the world are celebrating Thanksgiving today, but there is no break for troops on the front lines.
Oklahoma's 45th Brigade has faced a particularly tough fight in east-central Afghanistan. Since it fully deployed last July, 14 of its team have been killed in action. That included the first woman from Oklahoma to die on the battlefied, Pfc. Sarina Butcher, a 19-year-old mother.The previous brigade from Iowa saw four of its soldiers killed in action while it was deployed there.
read more here
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Father, Son Return From Afghanistan For Family Thanksgiving
Father, Son Return From Afghanistan For Family Thanksgiving
November 24, 2011
LAGUNA HILLS (CBS) — A father, one of the oldest recruits in the U.S. Army. His son, an infantry marine on the front lines. Their safe return from Afghanistan is what their family will celebrate around the Thanksgiving dinner table. In the midst of a booming dermatology practice in Newport Beach, Dr. Dore Gilbert decided to follow a lifelong dream. He joined the Army at the age of 60.
Gilbert was determined not to let his age hold him back. “I just couldn’t use that as an excuse,” says Gilbert. “I was done with excuses. I wanted to serve my country.” Gilbert knew the last three months he spent serving as a brigade surgeon in Afghanistan could cost him his life. Still it was the safety of another that was constantly on his mind. Gilbert’s 22-year-old son, Kevin is a U.S. Marine who was also assigned to Afghanistan.
read more here
November 24, 2011
LAGUNA HILLS (CBS) — A father, one of the oldest recruits in the U.S. Army. His son, an infantry marine on the front lines. Their safe return from Afghanistan is what their family will celebrate around the Thanksgiving dinner table. In the midst of a booming dermatology practice in Newport Beach, Dr. Dore Gilbert decided to follow a lifelong dream. He joined the Army at the age of 60.
Gilbert was determined not to let his age hold him back. “I just couldn’t use that as an excuse,” says Gilbert. “I was done with excuses. I wanted to serve my country.” Gilbert knew the last three months he spent serving as a brigade surgeon in Afghanistan could cost him his life. Still it was the safety of another that was constantly on his mind. Gilbert’s 22-year-old son, Kevin is a U.S. Marine who was also assigned to Afghanistan.
read more here
Gabrielle Giffords Serves Thanksgiving Meal At Arizona Air Base
Gabrielle Giffords Serves Thanksgiving Meal At Arizona Air Base
MATT YORK and BOB CHRISTIE
11/24/11
TUCSON, Ariz. — U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords helped serve a Thanksgiving meal to service members and retirees at a military base in her hometown of Tucson, Ariz.
Giffords arrived in the dining hall at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base at midday Thursday wearing a ball cap and an apron with her nickname of "Gabby" sewn on the front. She was accompanied by her retired astronaut husband, Mark Kelly, who also donned an apron.
Giffords used only her left hand as she served, a sign that physical damage remains from the injuries she suffered when she was shot in January.
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MATT YORK and BOB CHRISTIE
11/24/11
TUCSON, Ariz. — U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords helped serve a Thanksgiving meal to service members and retirees at a military base in her hometown of Tucson, Ariz.
Giffords arrived in the dining hall at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base at midday Thursday wearing a ball cap and an apron with her nickname of "Gabby" sewn on the front. She was accompanied by her retired astronaut husband, Mark Kelly, who also donned an apron.
Giffords used only her left hand as she served, a sign that physical damage remains from the injuries she suffered when she was shot in January.
read more here
Bind up the invisible wounds
Simcox & Gates: Bind up the invisible wounds
By: STACEY-RAE SIMCOX, ERNIE GATES
Published: November 24, 2011
Sgt. Monté Webster came home from Iraq with a Purple Heart, some shrapnel still in his body and a bad attitude. He got a discharge, a separation check and a "Thank you for your service."
What he didn't get was the post-deployment medical review that's supposed to be mandatory — the review that should have disclosed his post-traumatic stress disorder, his depression and his traumatic brain injury from the mortar attack that blasted his squad in Samarra.
Webster, who now lives in Texas, is one of thousands of combat veterans who have gone without that critical physical and mental evaluation, known as a post-deployment health re-assessment.
By the Army's own accounting, from 2006 until June 30 of this year, about 5 percent of its returning soldiers never were reviewed. More critically, only 59 percent were assessed within the prescribed 90- to 180-day window after returning. That 90-day wait matters because sleeplessness, headaches, irritability and other symptoms can be masked or dismissed in the first few months after returning from a combat zone. Research has shown that returning soldiers' mental-health problems are more likely to be diagnosed accurately in the second 90 days. Of the soldiers reviewed too soon, the Army estimated, one-third had potentially serious conditions that might have emerged more severely later — severely enough to make them non-deployable.
read more here
By: STACEY-RAE SIMCOX, ERNIE GATES
Published: November 24, 2011
Sgt. Monté Webster came home from Iraq with a Purple Heart, some shrapnel still in his body and a bad attitude. He got a discharge, a separation check and a "Thank you for your service."
What he didn't get was the post-deployment medical review that's supposed to be mandatory — the review that should have disclosed his post-traumatic stress disorder, his depression and his traumatic brain injury from the mortar attack that blasted his squad in Samarra.
Webster, who now lives in Texas, is one of thousands of combat veterans who have gone without that critical physical and mental evaluation, known as a post-deployment health re-assessment.
By the Army's own accounting, from 2006 until June 30 of this year, about 5 percent of its returning soldiers never were reviewed. More critically, only 59 percent were assessed within the prescribed 90- to 180-day window after returning. That 90-day wait matters because sleeplessness, headaches, irritability and other symptoms can be masked or dismissed in the first few months after returning from a combat zone. Research has shown that returning soldiers' mental-health problems are more likely to be diagnosed accurately in the second 90 days. Of the soldiers reviewed too soon, the Army estimated, one-third had potentially serious conditions that might have emerged more severely later — severely enough to make them non-deployable.
read more here
Army IDs alleged Sgt. Matthew Gallagher's killer
Army IDs alleged Gallagher killer
By sean teehan
November 24, 2011
FALMOUTH — The Army notified Sgt. Matthew Gallagher's family this week that military proceedings against their son's accused killer will start next month.
The slain soldier's relatives were told that Sgt. Brent McBride, Gallagher's roommate and alleged killer, will face a pretrial investigation in Fort Hood, Texas, on Dec. 17.
"It just seems to be a never-ending story," said Cheryl Ruggiero, Gallagher's mother, who previously told the Times an autopsy had ruled her son's death a homicide. The cause of death was a single gunshot wound to the head.
On Wednesday, a Fort Hood spokesman confirmed the defendant's identity and impending court appearance.
"McBride, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, faces charges stemming from an incident that occurred in Wasit Province, Iraq, on June 26, that resulted in the death of Sgt. Matthew Gallagher," said Sgt. Tyler Broadway in an email to the Times.
"As with all military accused, McBride is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law," he said.
The circumstances surrounding Gallagher's death were shrouded in mystery since Army sergeants delivered the news to his mother, father and wife a week before his 23rd birthday. Family members originally thought Gallagher died during a combat operation. The Department of Defense later released a statement calling Gallagher's death noncombat related.
By the time media outlets caught wind that officials had ruled Gallagher's death a homicide, family members had known for about two months that McBride was suspected of the crime, Ruggiero said.
read more here
By sean teehan
November 24, 2011
FALMOUTH — The Army notified Sgt. Matthew Gallagher's family this week that military proceedings against their son's accused killer will start next month.
The slain soldier's relatives were told that Sgt. Brent McBride, Gallagher's roommate and alleged killer, will face a pretrial investigation in Fort Hood, Texas, on Dec. 17.
"It just seems to be a never-ending story," said Cheryl Ruggiero, Gallagher's mother, who previously told the Times an autopsy had ruled her son's death a homicide. The cause of death was a single gunshot wound to the head.
On Wednesday, a Fort Hood spokesman confirmed the defendant's identity and impending court appearance.
"McBride, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, faces charges stemming from an incident that occurred in Wasit Province, Iraq, on June 26, that resulted in the death of Sgt. Matthew Gallagher," said Sgt. Tyler Broadway in an email to the Times.
"As with all military accused, McBride is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law," he said.
The circumstances surrounding Gallagher's death were shrouded in mystery since Army sergeants delivered the news to his mother, father and wife a week before his 23rd birthday. Family members originally thought Gallagher died during a combat operation. The Department of Defense later released a statement calling Gallagher's death noncombat related.
By the time media outlets caught wind that officials had ruled Gallagher's death a homicide, family members had known for about two months that McBride was suspected of the crime, Ruggiero said.
read more here
Community takes in 300 single Marines for holiday
Community takes in Marines for holiday
November 24, 2011 3:51 AM
HOPE HODGE - DAILY NEWS STAFF
More than 300 single Marines from Camp Lejeune will have a place to go for Thanksgiving, thanks to nearby communities and businesses that want to show their gratitude.
Camp Lejeune Single Marine Program coordinator Susan Goodrich said she was asked to place many more Marines at a holiday meal this year than she has in years previous.
“We’ve added some new communities, and the outlying areas that have contacted me this year have expanded out even more,” she said.
In addition to the River Landing community in Wallace and Fairfield Harbour in New Bern, which have taken Marines in for a day of dinner and relaxation for the last few years, two businesses in Wilmington are making sure troops have a meal.
Carolyn Atkinson, owner of Wilmington’s Flying Pi Kitchen, said she knew when she opened for business this year that she would always have troops at her Thanksgiving table.
“My son was in the Marine Corps. He was stationed at Camp Lejeune for awhile, and he was hosted in the Jacksonville area by a family for Thanksgiving,” Atkinson said. “When I opened my restaurant I decided that as long as I have a kitchen there would be Marines fed in my restaurant for Thanksgiving.
read more here
November 24, 2011 3:51 AM
HOPE HODGE - DAILY NEWS STAFF
More than 300 single Marines from Camp Lejeune will have a place to go for Thanksgiving, thanks to nearby communities and businesses that want to show their gratitude.
Camp Lejeune Single Marine Program coordinator Susan Goodrich said she was asked to place many more Marines at a holiday meal this year than she has in years previous.
“We’ve added some new communities, and the outlying areas that have contacted me this year have expanded out even more,” she said.
In addition to the River Landing community in Wallace and Fairfield Harbour in New Bern, which have taken Marines in for a day of dinner and relaxation for the last few years, two businesses in Wilmington are making sure troops have a meal.
Carolyn Atkinson, owner of Wilmington’s Flying Pi Kitchen, said she knew when she opened for business this year that she would always have troops at her Thanksgiving table.
“My son was in the Marine Corps. He was stationed at Camp Lejeune for awhile, and he was hosted in the Jacksonville area by a family for Thanksgiving,” Atkinson said. “When I opened my restaurant I decided that as long as I have a kitchen there would be Marines fed in my restaurant for Thanksgiving.
read more here
There are over 6,000 families spending this Thanksgiving with one less member
There are people getting ready to sit down to a big Thanksgiving feast today and planning where to go for Black Friday to get the best deals for Christmas shopping. They have very little room for thoughts of the people lining up to get a meal from volunteers holding off their own dinners to provide what very well may be the only good meal the poor will have all week.
Families gather together looking at all the food on the table and wondering who will be the first to start an argument or when the nasty one of the relatives will make some kind of remark making everyone uncomfortable.
There are also families across this country looking at an empty chair and wondering what they could have done differently so that the family member would be able to join them one more year.
When a serviceman or woman dies in combat, it seems a death to be honored but when they die because of suicide it is a death that leaves regret.
I know the feeling. Years ago my husband's nephew committed suicide. He was a Vietnam Vet with PTSD. I couldn't save him and no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't help him. He didn't want to listen, but worse, he didn't want to talk. To this day I wonder what I could have done differently but more now, I wonder why he didn't do things differently. Why did he choose to try to hide his pain instead of asking for help from the VA doctors treating him? Why didn't he talk to my husband or to me instead of checking himself in a motel room with enough heroin to kill ten men? Why didn't he talk to his girlfriend or to his brother? Was he in so much pain that no one else mattered to him anymore?
There are over 6,000 families spending this Thanksgiving with one less member of the family because of combat and suicide. Those are just the numbers we know about since they had a VA claim and were tracked by the VA but there are more. The latest report is one veteran suicide every 80 minutes. The DOD has their own count but you have to add them up since the Marines have their numbers, the Army has their's and then the Reservists and National Guards numbers come in separately. If the man or woman are discharged, they are not on the DOD counts and if they do not have a VA claim, they are not on their counts either. They will and forever will be on the counts of the family members facing an empty chair.
I found this piece this morning and it offers some support for family members left behind. It is never easy when some dies due to natural causes but when you add in combat, while you may think about it happening due to the dangerous jobs they have, you are never really ready for it. When it comes to suicides after they are supposed to be out of danger, it is something that you are never really over but you can stop torturing yourself because of how they decided to end their suffering.
Families gather together looking at all the food on the table and wondering who will be the first to start an argument or when the nasty one of the relatives will make some kind of remark making everyone uncomfortable.
There are also families across this country looking at an empty chair and wondering what they could have done differently so that the family member would be able to join them one more year.
When a serviceman or woman dies in combat, it seems a death to be honored but when they die because of suicide it is a death that leaves regret.
I know the feeling. Years ago my husband's nephew committed suicide. He was a Vietnam Vet with PTSD. I couldn't save him and no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't help him. He didn't want to listen, but worse, he didn't want to talk. To this day I wonder what I could have done differently but more now, I wonder why he didn't do things differently. Why did he choose to try to hide his pain instead of asking for help from the VA doctors treating him? Why didn't he talk to my husband or to me instead of checking himself in a motel room with enough heroin to kill ten men? Why didn't he talk to his girlfriend or to his brother? Was he in so much pain that no one else mattered to him anymore?
There are over 6,000 families spending this Thanksgiving with one less member of the family because of combat and suicide. Those are just the numbers we know about since they had a VA claim and were tracked by the VA but there are more. The latest report is one veteran suicide every 80 minutes. The DOD has their own count but you have to add them up since the Marines have their numbers, the Army has their's and then the Reservists and National Guards numbers come in separately. If the man or woman are discharged, they are not on the DOD counts and if they do not have a VA claim, they are not on their counts either. They will and forever will be on the counts of the family members facing an empty chair.
I found this piece this morning and it offers some support for family members left behind. It is never easy when some dies due to natural causes but when you add in combat, while you may think about it happening due to the dangerous jobs they have, you are never really ready for it. When it comes to suicides after they are supposed to be out of danger, it is something that you are never really over but you can stop torturing yourself because of how they decided to end their suffering.
Santa Clara County averages one suicide every three daysThe last part about finding meaning in your loss applies here. It made me want to work harder to save the lives of others.
By Mary Gottschalk
Posted: 11/23/2011
Suicide is central to the plot of that most popular holiday film It's A Wonderful Life. Shakespeare romanticized it in Romeo and Juliet, and to some extent, so did the life-ending choices of musician Kurt Cobain as well as writers Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton and Hunter S. Thompson.
It's never mentioned in obituaries or death notices, although it occurs on average once every three days in Santa Clara County.
In 2009, the last year for which complete statistics are available, 103 men and 42 women took their own lives here. Ages 45 to 64 had the highest rate, followed by ages 24 to 44. Only one person under the age of 14 died by suicide, but that jumped to nine in the age 15 to 19 group.
Suicide is a subject very few people are comfortable talking about, yet health care professionals say that is exactly what is needed if the numbers are to come down. It is something they believe needs to be talked about openly and freely.
"We had to practice talking about breast cancer. We had to practice talking about sexually transmitted diseases. If we can talk about Viagra, why can't we talk about suicide prevention?" asks Elena Tindall, suicide prevention coordinator for Santa Clara County.
"I would like survivors to know they will get through it and let the process of grief take place. They will come through to the other side of. Let other people help them through and they will make it through."
Coping skills for the bereaved
From Brad Leary and Jeannine Parsons, Hospice of the Valley and the Community Grief and Counseling Center.
• Reach out for help: See a qualified counselor or support group to help you process your feelings. You cannot do this alone.
• Express your feelings: You may feel sad, depressed, confused and angry. Anger is a feeling we try to hide from others because it doesn't show us in a positive light. Yet, you need to work through your feelings of anger, and there can be a sense of relief when doing so.
•Share memories of your loved one: Photos and videos can be helpful. Many bereaved clients fear forgetting their loved ones. By sharing memories you can ensure that they will live on. It is important to speak aloud the name of your loved one to others.
• Be gentle with yourself: If possible, reduce your hours at work. Surround yourself with those that comfort you. Steer clear of people who want to tell you what or how to feel.
• Set limits and learn to say no.
• Call on your personal faith.
• Write a letter to your loved one.
• Writing: journal, poetry, music.
• Remember the choice was not yours: No one is the sole influence on another's life.
• Try not to make sense of the suicide; you may never know "why." Ninety percent of people who complete suicide have a psychiatric disorder.
• Take one moment at a time.
• There is no universal time frame for healing, but you will move forward.
• Find meaning in your loss: This can be helpful after a significant period of time. You may choose to start a cause. One bereaved client started a bike ride for hope in honor of his daughter. Proceeds from the ride benefit counseling services in a local high school.
• You will never be the same again, but know you can survive. You may not think so, but you can.
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‘Sick’ By ‘Call of Duty 3′ Commercials?
It looks like John Nolte is upset over a lot more than a series of Tweets from Luke Russert. Right here I need to mention that while I do know who Luke Russert is, I gave up watching cable news a long time ago. Occasionally I watch CNN and check their site along with the other "news" stations but if you read this blog often, it's pretty obvious I have little use for them. The reason is none of them are really paying much attention to the troops or our veterans yet their stories make the news in their hometown newspapers and TV stations news coverage every single day of the year. I guess they don't deserve the same kind of attention as political candidates or celebrities in the minds of producers, but it has been that way for a long time. The beginning of war is worth covering but they end up moving on soon afterwards. They want the two hour Hollywood ending to war, as gory and glorified as it can be. It would be their greatest joy if they could direct the ending of wars making sure they got there to capture it all on film and telling the generals to wait until they got set up. What happens to them is ignored unless something catastrophic happens and many of them die in the same event. What happens to them when they come home is also ignored unless one of them commits some type of crime. This all leaves the general public with the impression that what they see on the news is all there is.
Anyway back to this piece that really got my attention this morning. I have no clue who John Nolte is. Frankly, after reading this, I don't want to know who he is. "Call of Duty" commercials make me sick too just as when this video game first came out. It bothers me because so many people in this country can spend hour after hour playing this game of war but can't seem to spend a couple of minutes paying attention to the real ones going on. They can score points by killing people and then replay to have them alive again, but that isn't real life. They don't know how many real servicemen and women have died or lost limbs anymore than they know about how many committed suicide when they got back home and couldn't stop replaying the real life action in their minds.
The other thing is that the men and women serving in real combat are the same age as most of the people playing these war video games. Most go into the military right out of high school. This is why I am sick of the games played and the commercials for them. John Nolte seems more troubled by the fact that Luke Russert has his job and just used this to attack him instead of the problem stations like MSNBC really have. The fact that they just don't care enough about what is really going on in real life for the men and women serving this country today or the veterans who served it yesterday. I resent the fact that people will take the opportunity to use the military when they want to make a point that has nothing to do with them.
MSNBC’s Luke Russert Is Made ‘Sick’ By ‘Call of Duty 3′ Commercials: ‘Doesn’t Reflect Costs of War’
by John Nolte
This is a good time to bring up something that’s been bothering me for a couple of years now. As someone who has made his way in the world all on my own and without the help of rich parents or family connections, do I resent the fact that Tim Russert’s son Luke has been shot by the cannon of nepotism into a job men twice his age and with ten times his experience only dream of?
Actually, no.
This is how the world works. Relationships matter and that’s life. I do, however, resent the fact that he’s not up to the job and that every time he’s on MSNBC talking about his Congressional beat I get “Bugsy Malone” flashbacks.
And just to keep the movie metaphors flowing, there’s also that whole “Vertigo” vibe, where Luke is Kim Novak and MSNBC is the sad and twisted Jimmy Stewart trying to creepily recreate someone they lost by dressing some wannabe up to look just like them. Whatever’s going on between MSNBC and Luke Russert. it’s not healthy.
And what better proof of that than this series of sanctimonious tweets from Russert where he laments how “sick” a video game commercial makes him feel because it doesn’t “reflect the costs of war”:
read more here
Anyway back to this piece that really got my attention this morning. I have no clue who John Nolte is. Frankly, after reading this, I don't want to know who he is. "Call of Duty" commercials make me sick too just as when this video game first came out. It bothers me because so many people in this country can spend hour after hour playing this game of war but can't seem to spend a couple of minutes paying attention to the real ones going on. They can score points by killing people and then replay to have them alive again, but that isn't real life. They don't know how many real servicemen and women have died or lost limbs anymore than they know about how many committed suicide when they got back home and couldn't stop replaying the real life action in their minds.
The other thing is that the men and women serving in real combat are the same age as most of the people playing these war video games. Most go into the military right out of high school. This is why I am sick of the games played and the commercials for them. John Nolte seems more troubled by the fact that Luke Russert has his job and just used this to attack him instead of the problem stations like MSNBC really have. The fact that they just don't care enough about what is really going on in real life for the men and women serving this country today or the veterans who served it yesterday. I resent the fact that people will take the opportunity to use the military when they want to make a point that has nothing to do with them.
'He wanted to die'
COUPLE: Justin Crowley-Smilek with his girlfriend, Destiny Cook, in a photo she provided.Contributed photo
'He wanted to die'
Justin Crowley-Smilek’s girlfriend says he left home Saturday not planning to return
By Doug Harlow
Staff Writer
November 23
FARMINGTON -- Justin Crowley-Smilek left his apartment Saturday morning without his wallet, his watch or his cellphone.
Justin Crowley-Smilek, who was shot to death by a police officer near that spot on Saturday.
His girlfriend, Destiny Cook, who had stayed with him Friday night, said she now believes Crowley-Smilek knew he would not be coming back Saturday.
She said she believes he had intended to die that morning -- one way or the other.
A short time after he left home, Crowley-Smilek, 28, a former U.S. Army Ranger who suffered from combat stress and physical injuries from service in Afghanistan, was dead; shot multiple times by a police officer outside the Farmington municipal offices on U.S. Route 2.
Police Chief Jack Peck said Officer Ryan Rosie, who shot the former soldier, was countering deadly force with deadly force. Crowley-Smilek had a knife and acted in a threatening way toward the police officer, Peck said.
Cook said Crowley-Smilek wanted to settle down, raise his own food and start a family. He was buying a house in Mount Vernon, but had become increasingly paranoid in recent weeks and suffered from constant and severe back pain, she said.
It all finally caught up with him.
read more here
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
This holiday, troops in Afghanistan thankful for surviving IED blast
This holiday, troops in Afghanistan thankful for surviving IED blast
By MARTIN KUZ
Stars and Stripes
Published: November 23, 2011
GOSHTA, Afghanistan — Pfc. Derick Vinton was looking forward to lunch as he drove an armored vehicle back to his platoon’s base last month near this village five miles from Pakistan.
That’s when the earth snarled and ripped open.
An 80-pound IED buried in the dirt road detonated beneath the truck’s passenger side. The front wheels heaved upward several feet before landing with a violent stomp. Dust swallowed the cab as the air inside went black.
Vinton, 19, of Riverton, Wyo., heard only silence on his radio headset. A long moment passed. Then yelling erupted. The other three men in the truck were alive.
The four soldiers climbed out of the crippled vehicle. One had suffered a concussion; two had minor leg injuries. Vinton was unhurt.
read more here
By MARTIN KUZ
Stars and Stripes
Published: November 23, 2011
GOSHTA, Afghanistan — Pfc. Derick Vinton was looking forward to lunch as he drove an armored vehicle back to his platoon’s base last month near this village five miles from Pakistan.
That’s when the earth snarled and ripped open.
An 80-pound IED buried in the dirt road detonated beneath the truck’s passenger side. The front wheels heaved upward several feet before landing with a violent stomp. Dust swallowed the cab as the air inside went black.
Vinton, 19, of Riverton, Wyo., heard only silence on his radio headset. A long moment passed. Then yelling erupted. The other three men in the truck were alive.
The four soldiers climbed out of the crippled vehicle. One had suffered a concussion; two had minor leg injuries. Vinton was unhurt.
read more here
Half Naked Man Drives Up Indiana War Memorial
Half Naked Man Drives Up Indiana War Memorial: Police Arrest Daniel Whitaker For Terroristic Mischief
State Police arrested an Indianapolis man on Tuesday after he allegedly drove his SUV up the steps of the Indiana War Memorial, wrapped himself in an American flag, and lit a small fire.
Officials identified the half-naked protester as 49-year-old Daniel Whitaker, WTHR reports.
Whitaker, who described himself to police as a member of the "Texas army," placed a large cross on the memorial, which he briefly stood before while wearing a metal helmet fashioned with a plume and carrying a bright blue staff, police said.
Police also said that once Whitaker drove up the memorial, he poured a canister of gasoline down the steps and lit a fire, WSBT reports.
read more here
State Police arrested an Indianapolis man on Tuesday after he allegedly drove his SUV up the steps of the Indiana War Memorial, wrapped himself in an American flag, and lit a small fire.
Officials identified the half-naked protester as 49-year-old Daniel Whitaker, WTHR reports.
Whitaker, who described himself to police as a member of the "Texas army," placed a large cross on the memorial, which he briefly stood before while wearing a metal helmet fashioned with a plume and carrying a bright blue staff, police said.
Police also said that once Whitaker drove up the memorial, he poured a canister of gasoline down the steps and lit a fire, WSBT reports.
read more here
Jack Daniel's Funds Travel Expenses for Fort Campbell Soldiers
Jack Daniel's Funds Travel Expenses for Soldiers
Published November 23, 2011
Associated Press
NASHVILLE, Tenn.-- Tennessee whiskey maker Jack Daniel's is donating more than $100,000 to pay for plane tickets and travel funds for soldiers at Fort Campbell, Ky., to spend the December holiday season with their families all over the country.
The distiller is also asking the public to make additional contributions that could help hundreds of cash-strapped soldiers who otherwise would be stuck at the post on the Tennessee-Kentucky state line. Donations can be made to the Operation Ride Home campaign online at www.jdoperationridehome.com.
read more here
Published November 23, 2011
Associated Press
NASHVILLE, Tenn.-- Tennessee whiskey maker Jack Daniel's is donating more than $100,000 to pay for plane tickets and travel funds for soldiers at Fort Campbell, Ky., to spend the December holiday season with their families all over the country.
The distiller is also asking the public to make additional contributions that could help hundreds of cash-strapped soldiers who otherwise would be stuck at the post on the Tennessee-Kentucky state line. Donations can be made to the Operation Ride Home campaign online at www.jdoperationridehome.com.
read more here
Army disputes Occupy Buffalo Veteran's service
Army Records at Odds With Occupy Vet's Claims
November 23, 2011
Buffalo News
by Stephen T. Watson
The claims of a dedicated member of the Occupy Buffalo movement that he saw combat in Iraq and Afghanistan are not supported by Army records.
Christopher M. Simmance has told several media outlets, including The Buffalo News, that he served as many as three tours of duty in those war zones and that he was severely injured in Afghanistan.
Service records obtained from the Army, however, show he was stationed at Fort Lewis, Wash., for three years and he left the active-duty Army in January 2001 -- before the 9/11 terror attacks.
Simmance insists his Army records are incomplete. He told The News he stands by his claims of seeing combat.
"Everything I've told you is completely true; I've got nothing to hide," Simmance said in one of three interviews.
read more here
November 23, 2011
Buffalo News
by Stephen T. Watson
The claims of a dedicated member of the Occupy Buffalo movement that he saw combat in Iraq and Afghanistan are not supported by Army records.
Christopher M. Simmance has told several media outlets, including The Buffalo News, that he served as many as three tours of duty in those war zones and that he was severely injured in Afghanistan.
Service records obtained from the Army, however, show he was stationed at Fort Lewis, Wash., for three years and he left the active-duty Army in January 2001 -- before the 9/11 terror attacks.
Simmance insists his Army records are incomplete. He told The News he stands by his claims of seeing combat.
"Everything I've told you is completely true; I've got nothing to hide," Simmance said in one of three interviews.
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Fallen Soldier's Remains Return To Longwood Florida
Fallen Soldier's Remains Return To Fla.
Funeral Set For Next Wednesday
POSTED: 1:24 pm EST November 18, 2011
ORLANDO, Fla. -- The body of a local soldier who was killed in Afghanistan returned to Central Florida on Friday.
The Department of Defense said 25-year-old Army Pfc. Theodore B. Rushing died on Veterans Day in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan.
He suffered fatal wounds when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device.
Rushing was going to follow his father's footsteps and become a police officer, but once he joined the army, he told his dad that he'd found a new career.
"He liked the fact that he was able to give back to his country that had given so much back to him. He liked the fact that he was a Calvary scout, out front paving the way for everybody else," said Rushing's father, Rick Rushing, on Friday.
Members of the Orlando Police Department and the Orange County Sheriff's Office escorted Rushing's remains to the funeral home.
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Funeral Set For Next Wednesday
POSTED: 1:24 pm EST November 18, 2011
ORLANDO, Fla. -- The body of a local soldier who was killed in Afghanistan returned to Central Florida on Friday.
The Department of Defense said 25-year-old Army Pfc. Theodore B. Rushing died on Veterans Day in Kandahar Province, Afghanistan.
He suffered fatal wounds when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device.
Rushing was going to follow his father's footsteps and become a police officer, but once he joined the army, he told his dad that he'd found a new career.
"He liked the fact that he was able to give back to his country that had given so much back to him. He liked the fact that he was a Calvary scout, out front paving the way for everybody else," said Rushing's father, Rick Rushing, on Friday.
Members of the Orlando Police Department and the Orange County Sheriff's Office escorted Rushing's remains to the funeral home.
The funeral is scheduled for next Wednesday. A viewing is set for Saturday at the Baldwin Fairchild Funeral Home on Lake Ivanhoe.
read more here
Iraq war veteran J.R. Martinez now 'Dancing' champ
Iraq war veteran J.R. Martinez now 'Dancing' champ
(AP) LOS ANGELES — J.R. Martinez started out as the least-known member of the "Dancing With the Stars" cast, but as the season went on, America fell in love with the 28-year-old soldier-turned-soap opera star.
"Dancing" draws 18 million viewers a week who got a firsthand look at the Iraq war veteran with the infectious positive attitude. They heard his story: How he was severely burned over more than 40 percent of his body when the Humvee he was driving for the U.S. Army struck a land mine, how he underwent numerous surgeries over years of recovery — then they saw him dancing like that had happened to somebody else. The 28-year-old actor and motivational speaker radiates joy.
"You've got such a sparkling personality, you just light up this room," ''Dancing" judge Len Goodman said.
Earlier this month, Martinez was chosen as grand marshal of the 123rd annual Tournament of Roses parade. He was on the cover of People magazine and named one of its "sexiest men" a few weeks later. And on Tuesday, he became the new "Dancing With the Stars" champion.
(AP) LOS ANGELES — J.R. Martinez started out as the least-known member of the "Dancing With the Stars" cast, but as the season went on, America fell in love with the 28-year-old soldier-turned-soap opera star.
"Dancing" draws 18 million viewers a week who got a firsthand look at the Iraq war veteran with the infectious positive attitude. They heard his story: How he was severely burned over more than 40 percent of his body when the Humvee he was driving for the U.S. Army struck a land mine, how he underwent numerous surgeries over years of recovery — then they saw him dancing like that had happened to somebody else. The 28-year-old actor and motivational speaker radiates joy.
"You've got such a sparkling personality, you just light up this room," ''Dancing" judge Len Goodman said.
Earlier this month, Martinez was chosen as grand marshal of the 123rd annual Tournament of Roses parade. He was on the cover of People magazine and named one of its "sexiest men" a few weeks later. And on Tuesday, he became the new "Dancing With the Stars" champion.
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