We must never forget who deserves the credit for the freedoms we have, of which we should be
eternally grateful.

I watched the flag pass by one day,
It fluttered in the breeze.
A young Marine saluted it,
And then he stood at ease..

I looked at him in uniform
So young, so tall, so proud,
With hair cut square and eyes alert
He’d stand out in any crowd.

I thought how many men like him
Had fallen through the years.
How many died on foreign soil
How many mothers’ tears?

How many pilots’ planes shot down?
How many died at sea
How many foxholes were soldiers’ graves?
No, freedom isn’t free.

I heard the sound of Taps one night,
When everything was still,
I listened to the bugler play
And felt a sudden chill.

I wondered just how many times
That Taps had meant “Amen,”
When a flag had draped a coffin.
Of a brother or a friend.

I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands
With interrupted lives.

I thought about a graveyard
At the bottom of the sea
Of unmarked graves in Arlington.
No, freedom isn’t free

A friend asked how I felt being a dad now.  I described it like this:

It’s like my whole world was in black and white but then when he was born it suddenly turned to color and I realized that this was the way it should be

Yep – welcome to Oz

Matt with an expression I usually have at work

My dad and my son.

Below the fold – silly cat pictures

Zane and Coop – worn out after a day of causing trouble

You didn’t really want to shave, did you??

All technical support reps are currently busy, please hold for the next representative….

http://www.jensensutta.com/slideshows/RTB/

Here’s a REAL hero, unlike aforementioned douche nozzles.  Lt. Col Ted Lockwood personally helped rescue 14 women from slavery in Iraq and provided them with protection, food, shelter, clothing and used their own money to buy the women personal items at the exchange on the post.

And, like an actual hero, he doesn’t think he did anything special

“I am not interested in any publicity but would really like to raise awareness of the fate of these women and especially the 100+ that are still in Iraq,” Lockwood wrote in an initial email. “I do not need to be a part of your telling.”

Sorry, sir. But you do.

Rot in Hell you piece of human filth.

**UPDATE**

Guess that waterboarding shit DOES work, what a F***in surprise – not!

Detainees “identified this man as one of the few al-Qaeda couriers trusted by bin Laden, [and] indicated he might be living with or protecting bin Laden,” the official said. But until four years ago, the United States was unable to track the courier down or uncover his real name. In 2009, U.S. officials narrowed down the region in Pakistan where the courier was working, senior administration officials said.

Yep, I’m gonna bet they didn’t give us that information because we asked nicely and gave them the Discovery Channel.

Dear President Obama, My name is Harold Estes, approaching 95 on December 13 of this year. People meeting me for the first time don’t believe my age because I remain wrinkle free and pretty much mentally alert.

I enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1934 and served proudly before, during and after WW II retiring as a Master Chief Bos’n Mate. Now I live in a “rest home” located on the western end of Pearl Harbor , allowing me to keep alive the memories of 23 years of service to my country.

One of the benefits of my age, perhaps the only one, is to speak my mind, blunt and direct even to the head man.

So here goes.

I am amazed, angry and determined not to see my country die before I do, but you seem hell bent not to grant me that wish.

I can’t figure out what country you are the president of. You fly around the world telling our friends and enemies despicable lies like: ” We’re no longer a Christian nation” ” America is arrogant” – (Your wife even announced to the world,” America is mean- spirited.. ” Please tell her to try preaching that nonsense to 23 generations of our war dead buried all over the globe who died for no other reason than to free a whole lot of strangers from tyranny and hopelessness.) I’d say shame on the both of you, but I don’t think you like America, nor do I see an ounce of gratefulness in anything you do, for the obvious gifts this country has given you. To be without shame or gratefulness is a dangerous thing for a man sitting in the White House.

After 9/11 you said,” America hasn’t lived up to her ideals.”

Which ones did you mean? Was it the notion of personal liberty that 11,000 farmers and shopkeepers died for to win independence from the British? Or maybe the ideal that no man should be a slave to another man, that 500,000 men died for in the Civil War? I hope you didn’t mean the ideal 470,000 fathers, brothers, husbands, and a lot of fellas I knew personally died for in WWII, because we felt real strongly about not letting any nation push us around, because we stand for freedom.

I don’t think you mean the ideal that says equality is better than discrimination. You know the one that a whole lot of white people understood when they helped to get you elected.

Take a little advice from a very old geezer, young man.

Shape up and start acting like an American. If you don’t, I’ll do what I can to see you get shipped out of that fancy rental on Pennsylvania Avenue . You were elected to lead not to bow, apologize and kiss the hands of murderers and corrupt leaders who still treat their people like slaves.

And just who do you think you are telling the American people not to jump to conclusions and condemn that Muslim major who killed 13 of his fellow soldiers and wounded dozens more. You mean you don’t want us to do what you did when that white cop used force to subdue that black college professor in Massachusetts , who was putting up a fight? You don’t mind offending the police calling them stupid but you don’t want us to offend Muslim fanatics by calling them what they are, terrorists.

One more thing. I realize you never served in the military and never had to defend your country with your life, but you’re the Commander-in-Chief now, son. Do your job. When your battle-hardened field General asks you for 40,000 more troops to complete the mission, give them to him. But if you’re not in this fight to win, then get out. The life of one American soldier is not worth the best political strategy you’re thinking of.

You could be our greatest president because you face the greatest challenge ever presented to any president. You’re not going to restore American greatness by bringing back our bloated economy. That’s not our greatest threat. Losing the heart and soul of who we are as Americans is our big fight now. And I sure don’t want to think my president is the enemy in this final battle…

Sincerely, Harold B. Estes

I doubt the Teleprompter in Chief will listen, but I bet the next one will.  Of course, Sarah Palin has always been a patriotic American, one reason I like her so much.

To all out there who have lost loved ones in service to our country, my condolences and hope that God will grant you peace.  To those that I served with and have lost touch with over they years, I hope today sees you healthy and happy.  Clay, TJ, Ron, Chester, and Gonzo and Lane – Here’s to you gentlemen, my friends, mentors and fellow sailors.

May the wind always be at your back, and the road rise up to meet your feet.

God bless.

h/t to Ace for this one

The decline began in August when the British and the mercenary Hessian troops had routed Washington from Long Island and then pushed them out of Manhattan as well. Washington was forced to retreat to New Jersey and by December they had given that up and crossed into Pennsylvania. The British occupied New Jersey, Rhode Island, and New York. To the British is appeared that the rebellion had been crushed and the remnants would soon be rounded up.

Washington’s troops were demoralized and battered. Many of them didn’t even have shoes and instead had burlap sacks wrapped around their feet to try to keep them warm. Washington knew that he had to act quickly before the remnants of his forces fell apart or were killed by the harsh winter so, on Christmas night, he and his forces attempted the most daring attack that they had ever tried, they crossed the ice swollen Delaware river nine miles north of Trenton, New Jersey to attack the Hessian forces that occupied the town.

The weather during the crossing was horrendous; raging winds, snow, sleet and rain created almost impossible conditions, but they crossed anyway and then marched the nine miles south to Trenton. Remember, many of these men, if not most, had no shoes and they marched through blizzard like conditions. These were men who knew what they were fighting for and were willing to suffer the hardships that came with it.

The next morning, December 26^th, Washington’s troops attached and overran the Hessian troops who surrendered when their commanding officer was killed. The Continental army then retraced their path and withdrew back across the Delaware taking their prisoners with them.

This was the turning point in the revolution. In its darkest hour when all hope seemed lost and defeat was inevitable, rough men stood forth and grabbed victory for all of us and galvanized the spirit of the Colonies by showing the people that they could win. After this battle the ranks of the Continental swelled and the stunned British army realized they had a fierce opponent who would not go down in defeat quietly.

I write this because it reminded me that while we now face a different enemy that is attempting to rewrite our Constitution and slowly strip us of our right to self determination and freedom from government dictates, mandates and meddling, all is not lost. They may seem to have the upper hand now by controlling Congress and the White House but if we hold strong and fight on we can, and will, be victorious.

Out here on the left coast I encounter so many people on the left who hate anyone or anything that is different than they are. But there is one thing about hate that I have learned, it eats you up and burns you out. The far left tries to claim ownership of the crown of acceptance and diversity because they talk about it all the time, but I learned something from my old martial arts instructor on this matter. Those who practice what they preach don’t need to talk about it because their example will show.

We will win because the left’s ideas are hollow, their compassion false, and we have a better way. Keep the faith my brothers and sisters in God and in the military. We are Americans and we will not go quietly.  Don’t despair and don’t be afraid.  That’s their weapons, that’s what they want.  Look at their ads, look at how they attack anyone who disagrees – hate, fear, cries of racism.  No, we are better than this and we will win.

God bless you all.

“People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.”

~George Orwell

We are those rough men

Thanks to Brutally Honest.

More info about The Warrior Song here