Milblog Conference: FReeper Envy

For as long as the people from Free Republic have been active, I have envied their opportunity to stand on the corners at Walter Reed Army Medical Center countering the despicable individuals from Code Pink that [allegedly] protest against the war in Iraq and Afghanistan by protesting against injured soldiers under the guise of supporting them. They haven’t fooled the soldiers and they haven’t fooled us. You cannot say that you support our soldiers -- injured or not -- and stand in protest at the medical center where they are treated. They are not fooling anyone. Not even themselves. I digress.

At the top of my list when I agreed to be on a panel at the Milblogging Conference was the chance to stand on one or more corners at Walter Reed in support of our soldiers, their sacrifices and in opposition to the moonbats that comprise Code Pink. Going to WR was more than I ever could have imagined.

My husband and I worked at the conference center on Friday afternoon with Greta and Silke (HooahWife), Melinda (Most Certainly Not), and the spectacular Andi (Andi’s World) assembling name badges and packing the “goody bags” the attendees would receive at the Saturday conference. The husband and I met up around 6:00PM with Stacy (Keep My Soldier Safe) and her friends Carol and Mel and we hopped into a (very crowded) cab for the trip to WRAMC.

Me & Stacy

WRAMC is a huge complex of buildings that house medical and surgical services for our military. Our cabbie drove around three sides of the complex before we spied the FReepers. We popped out of the cab, introduced ourselves to FReepers Bill and GunnNutt, and immediately began choosing our signs. Not long after we arrived, a group of young men approached from inside the WR gate and began hootin’ and hollerin’ at us. One of the FReepers mentioned that it was a group of wounded soldiers; Stacy immediately went to the intersection and began waving and hollerin’ back at the guys.

The FReepers introduced us to these regulars and immediately we were all exchanging big bear hugs. I couldn’t squeeze these young men enough -- and judging by the strength of the hugs back, they were just as happy to be getting MOM HUGS as Stacy and I were to give them! I couldn't help but recall when I first saw Noah at Landstuhl Army Medical Center last August and how much I wanted to (but couldn't) hug him just as hard; I made up for it with these guys. Stacy and I both teared up pretty good when talking with the soldiers and they seemed delighted that the moms of other soldiers were there to show their support. There was a lot of hugging and picture taking going on! And, of course, the “guys” decided to go down the block where the Pinkos were and engage them -- so Stacy and I did the “Mom thing” as we called after them, “Now don’t go getting’ into no trouble down there… Don’t make us come down there to get ya!” with great glee, I might add.

Our Heroes & the MOAB: Mother Of All Banners

It was especially difficult for me not to become emotional when seeing the shrapnel scar across the forehead of one soldier, the clearly visible scars of another where the injury to his eye area had been repaired although they could not save his eye. It was difficult not to notice the limp or the grimace on another soldier. It was also elating to have people in cars going by honking and waving in support. It was great to have a number of other milbloggers join us -- Maryann (Soldiers Angels - Germany), Toni (Bear Creek Ledger), Agnieszka (a most amazing supporter of troops!), Heidi (EuphoricReality), among others. Even when it began to pour rain and the temperature dropped 10 degrees in 10 minutes, we stayed for the guys. They are wonderful. They are heroes.

It was an experience I will always remember, always treasure. I hope to repeat it -- unless the Pinkos go away and it’s not needed anymore. (We can only hope!)

BBC Story on Panel Two of the Milblog Conference

You can find the BBC story here ...

Update: For those that emailed, my son (and the original post about it) was written August 23, 2005.

Welcome BBC readers and Army News readers...

DEAR SOME SOLDIER'S MOM

I have a number of experiences from the Milblog Conference that I plan to share over the next few days. All in all, it was a truly remarkable experience and I was overwhelmed with meeting my favorite milbloggers. If you didn't make it this year, when the date for the next conference is announced, you better mark your calendars!! It is just not to be missed (really -- it was that good!)

Stacy, Greta, Rach, Chris, Melinda, Heidi, Kit, Andi (oh my gosh -- Andi!!), Matt, Jim, Smash, Chuck, Carren, Capt. B., Taco (and your Mom -- what a terrific lady!), Dave M, Bob... there's more. But I'll save that for a real post.

In the meantime, I started this post before the conference but was having so much fun, I didn't get it posted... A friend asked if I ever got emails... so I thought I'd share a few...

DEAR SOME SOLDIER’S MOM

Over the past year I have received many, many emails from parents, spouses and friends of soldiers covering many subjects: looking for advice, sharing the fear they feel, talking about the wounding of their children, the death of their sons. I respond to every one.

I want to share some of these emails. I have eliminated names, units and locations. They are in no particular order.

This was after I wrote about Tim Watkins after his death.

Dear Ma’am, You do not know me and I am sure that your son Noah does not either. Tim was my best friend and the one I loved. He was my everything. When I found out about Phelps and all that was to happen the day of his funeral it about killed me again. I was again looking online and became greatly encouraged by the testimony that Noah said about Tim. Thank you, so much. If Noah has any other stories about Tim and his work in Iraq I would love to hear about them. Thank you again for your encouraging website. In Christ, because He rose again, NZ

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Dear Some Soldier’s Mother;
Good evening. I just read your post about the soldiers from 2/69. My husband just called me from Iraq today, desperate to know the names. He heard over there about the 5 from 2-69 and that they were from the same Company as SSG Benford. He's very scared that it's more of his close friends. Do you happen to know the names? If you don’t, or don't want to pass them out, I understand. I'll just hope that I hear from some of my wife friends from 2/69 in the next day or so. I just don't want to call any of them, in fear that they haven't heard the news from the unit, or that it might be their husbands. Take care, and I'm praying for Noah. I understand that it must be very hard for him to be back home while his brothers are still over there. I understand, because I think my husband feels the same way. So many of the guys from A. Co. 2/69 are his old buddies from A. 1/15 and it's only because he was moved from the company to another company in the unit that he didn't move to 2/69 with the rest of them.

I'll keep praying for Noah, for his physical recovery, and for the hard times ahead due to the loss of more of his brothers. -- A Soldier’s Wife

I wrote back with the names which had been released by the DoD. Her response:

That is so awful. I'm so sorry to hear that. I didn't realize that they were all from Noah's platoon and I must have missed two of them. I know SSG Benford and Bohling and now these 5, but I'm not sure who the other two were. I know that 2-69 has lost 12 total now since January. It's just so awful. They've have been hit so very hard this deployment.

Thanks so much for letting me know the names of the two that you knew. I really appreciate it and I'd really appreciate it if you let me know the others once you find them out. I'm sure it will be on the casualty report in the next day or so, but if it's someone we know, I'd rather be able to be there for them now, as opposed to in a couple days when the news trickles down.

Did Noah say how [Mrs.] Benford and the boys are doing? I haven't talked to her in a couple of days and wondered if she was okay. I always have a hard time catching her when she's not busy. -- A Soldier’s Wife

She wrote me again after I updated on the blog... but not all the families had been notified and although I knew the names, the names had not been officially released.

I just read your update. I can't imagine how hard it must be for Noah to have lost so many people close to him in such a short time, and while he's here at home. I'm sure it is very hard for him to endure. I talked to my husband today and we had 7 guys that were evac'd yesterday when their Bradley was hit by an IED and the fuel tank caught fire. Massive burns, but last I heard, they were stable. That's good news. It was my husband's guys, though, that he just left last week for a new position. He said there's a huge amount of helplessness and guilt because you feel like you should have been there with them.

C. said that he knew SSG Simmons... has known him since he was a Specialist. Like Jason Benford, they were all in the same Company the first time around. He's still anxiously awaiting the news of who the others lost were, to find out if they, too, were friends and comrades that he knows. Hopefully, the names will be released soon.

Please, tell Noah that we are thinking of him and praying for the families of these soldiers as well as his brothers that are still over there fighting. I pray for my husband and each and every other soldier every night. God bless. -- A Soldier’s Wife

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Dear Some Soldier’s Mom;
I’ve just spent the last hour reading (and tearing-up over) many of your postings regarding your son, Noah; I am new to both “blogging” and the Army, as my eldest son (a recent college graduate) enlisted this fall. He is currently in training at Fort Benning and I am both extremely proud of him and terribly anxious about his future. I stumbled across your site while I was furiously trying to find as much information about his coming experiences as possible. I started reading your most recent postings, and celebrated with you over Noah’s return to relatively good health after being wounded. Then I looked back to your entries from last December, and I was struck by how well you were able to put so very many of my feelings into words.

I’m not sure if this e-mail is the appropriate response (as I said, I am VERY new to the concept of blogging, and don’t understand all the etiquette yet) but I wanted to thank you for letting me know there are other families out there experiencing what we will be. We are lucky in that Tim is home for 2 weeks for “Christmas Exodus”, but I know that this is most likely the last Christmas for several years that we will all be together, and I find myself close to tears several times a day for next to no reason. After Infantry training ends in February he is going to Airborne, and then, most likely “over there” – every mother’s nightmare! But he’s doing exactly what he wants to be doing, and as a parent I can’t ask for more than that for any of my children.

Again, I just wanted to thank you for putting your experience into words, so that newbies like me can learn from them. I plan on visiting your site frequently to follow your boys - and perhaps to feel a little closer to my own. -- A “new” soldiers mom

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I have enjoyed (if that is the right word) reading your blog and have followed you since Noah was wounded. You have made me proud, made me cry, made me smile ... you have a great gift for describing things. I was most amazed at your recounting of the funeral and the beautiful pictures. Well done. I can't imagine how hard that must have been.

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I came to your blog via the Soldiers Angels message board... I've just read your account of the phone call from Hell and it took me back to 6AM October 19, 2004, when the Washington Casualty Office called to inform me that my son, N, had been seriously wounded by a roadside IED. I think my bags were packed & ready to go out the door at about 6:10 that morning, but, thankfully, my trip was delayed by 4 days and to Washington (Walter Reed) rather than Germany. My prayers are with your Noah for continued recovery and with your family. May this be the most difficult thing we ever have to deal with for the rest of our lives! When you finally get to hold your son in your arms, thank him for his service from an Army mom. God bless your family.

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Dear Some Soldier’s Mom,

I stumbled across your blog today after reading over at Blackfive, and I felt the need to reach out to you. I was very sorry to hear that your son was wounded in Iraq but very glad to hear that he is now home and recovering. Congratulations to you, your family and Noah. I hope and pray that for the rest of his days God will keep him safe and sound.

I know what it is like to hear that your loved one has been in an IED explosion, wounded, and going to Germany. My fiance was a 50 cal. [caliber] gunner with the gun trucks (armed escorts for the convoys) from ******, and had damage done to his lower back due to an IED that exploded beneath the bed of his truck. He was brought home in Oct. 04 via Landstuhl and has long since been medically retired from the Army, and now is awaiting his VA compensation. I pray for Noah that he will recover fully and if he so desires be returned to his unit. I say this because even though my fiance came home, only his body returned. He is a shell of the person I knew and loved deeply because he lived and breathed the Army, and now can't be a part of it anymore. He is angry and resentful about his disabilities, and often sinks into depressions that I wish no one would have to suffer through or witness.

When I watch homecomings on the news or hear of them, I realize that in my heart I am still waiting for ours. The one where the man I knew and loved walks towards me with his arms wide and I know not only know with my eyes, but with my heart that *all* of him is finally home. I say that because some where buried in the sands between Baghdad and Sadr City is the man I once knew and I pray that some day he, too, will come home to me. Don't get me wrong, I still love him and every day I pray that we can still have a future together. But every day it seems bleaker and dimmer because he's just not there to want it. I'm not even sure he wants to live. He's hanging on and some days it scares me that the reality is that he survived Iraq only to come home and cease to exist. I pray that you and Noah never know this part of it.

We were to be married at the first of October and it has in the past week been postponed indefinitely and he has since moved out, all his doing. He says we are still together but he needs to find himself and get help. I wish he were really doing that, but honestly I believe he's hiding out, and I just don't know how to reach him anymore.

(after re-reading the above paragraph it hit me that it could be misunderstood. please understand that I love him no matter what his disabilities are or aren't. It's my fiance who can't accept life as it is now and refuses to let go or at least try to take the first step to healing.)

Thank your son for me for his service and his sacrifice. I know they don't deem themselves heroes because to them heroes don't come home, but what they fail to realize is that they are all heroes because they will never fully come home. Each of them will leave behind a part of themselves in the sands of Iraq/Afghanistan and Iraq/Afghanistan will be with them forever. They are all heroes to me. God bless you and your family and your soldier and may He keep you all safe. Thank you for your words, your insight and your voice.

If you by any chance come across anyone else who's got their soldier home, but are still wait for that "homecoming" would you point them in my direction? I know they are out there some where and we need to lean on one another as we try to help our soldier's, ex and present, to cope with their losses, no matter what they are. Sometimes I feel so alone even though I know I'm not. much love, TM

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Thank you for putting yourself on our map... thank you for the sacrifice that only a mother can understand... thank you for your tenacity and dedication and for your beautiful sweet son and the values you instilled in him... for your encouragement of others and for being an ARMY OF ONE.

I got my "Dear John-ette" letter 3 weeks ago. Left the lines of communication open as this is T's 3rd deployment to WAR. I love him more than the day is long and I only hope he is okay. I may never know. I cannot separate myself from the role of Mil-spouse as he is still every other beat of my heart... my pain and loss loom large but he cannot know that. I must be steadfast and strong and sunshine. Love. S

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In many ways you and the wives of soldiers have the toughest job. My prayers are with you.

Though it's hard for you, because of your motherhood you do have a special authority when you do choose to speak. May God give you wisdom about when and where to do so. - JJ

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I thank you for your comment to the mudville gazette post "Mike" regarding my son, SGT Mike Stokely. He was a good boy, great man. We miss him dearly. But, we have chosen to celebrate his life and what he stood for rather than languish in self-pity for what we have lost, for that is the best way we, as a family, can show how much we respect him and to honor him. thanks, RS

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Hello,

I found your blog today. I am here in AZ also. My son is a MP in Ft. S. He is soon to be deployed to Afghanistan. I will have him home for Thanksgiving. I am in PV. This is my first time with a deployment. You have a great blog and I have enjoyed reading it. PROUD MPM MOM

For goodness sake you live in P!! I live in ***. I lived in P for 10 ears as a kid and then moved to Safford. Always wanted to get back here, as this was always home to me. I have a son still at home T is a senior at BMHS. I had been gone from AZ for 20 years and have been back now for almost 2 years. I do not work as I am legally blind and am in the process of taking Braille and Cane Walking. My son C will be home for Thanksgiving. We are headed to Safford that Friday then back Sunday. He then has to leave the 1st back to Georgia. His wife is coming also whom I have never met. They met online and have only known each other 10 months and married for 4. Not a good deal. Long story there. Anyway feel free to call anytime would be great to meet you. Feels wonderful knowing you are here.

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Hi!! I just found your blog (via Blackfive) and my company lost some good working hours from me because I couldn't stop reading!!!

You are a gifted writer and a blessed woman in many ways it seems!!

Anyway, I don't know if I can be any help to your son, but I can do care packages - and I get GREAT deals thru work on soap/detergent/etc.

So my question is, do the other guys still need stuff????? Or is there something else I can do to help?

Just say the word! Prayers you've already got - what else can I offer??? Thanks, R

So I sent R the names of a few soldiers I knew that could really use some things...

Consider it done!! My Dad loves to help me put the boxes together. He reads Muscle and Fitness magazine and always throws a couple of those in too. Thanks, R

Then a few days later...

We got 2 boxes out on Saturday - one with soap stuff and one with food stuff. Hopefully it all gets there! Hope Noah is doing well. Hope all the guys are safe! Thanks, R

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My name is R and I am Timothy Watkins sister. I want to thank you for taking the time to put information about Tim and his funeral on your blog. It has been a huge encouragement to me to read the things others have to say about our soldiers. I also want to thank your son for telling my friend, Chris (the one who escorted Tim's remains), the story of his rescue. That is one of the many stories Tim did not share with me. My brother was one of my closest friends and now I know just a little more about him and what he did in Iraq. Thank you again. -- R

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I'm just starting with the military stuff - my son is in the delayed entry program with the marines and heads off to camp in June. I really loved your "Two Worlds" article and shared it with my wife.

**********

Thank you for your post about Tim. My name is M and our family knew Tim and we attend Calvary Baptist Church in Yucca Valley. Just wanted you to know that Phelps and his people were not at the funeral yesterday (thankfully!). This was an answer to prayer, as it would have been awful to have to deal with a situation like that.

The services were, while difficult, very honoring to Tim, his service to his country and to God. We were very proud of him and the other soldiers he served with. We continue to pray for all of our troops.

Also, the story your son told about Tim, was related at the funeral yesterday by the soldier who escorted Tim's remains home. Apparently he met your son at Dover (if I have the facts right). Please tell your son we are proud of him and thankful for his service.

Thank you again for your website and your dedication to it. It has been a comfort to me personally, to read more about the soldiers who served with Tim. We have told Pastor Watkins about this website, so they can read it and I am sure it will be a comfort to them too.

I did not want to post this publicly on your blog, as I wanted to write it more personally to you. You may use whatever info to relay the fact that there were no picketers yesterday. Thank you and God Bless you! Sincerely, MF

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Great Site!!! I found it by accident and I am glad I did.

As a Proud Soldier and a father about to return to Iraq, I want to thank you as a mother and as an American for your support of democracy and us. I hope your son finds what he is looking for in the Army or elsewhere. I am a USMA graduate who was enlisted and attended the USMA Prep School. If he is interested, it is worth the look. I am always at your service. Respectfully; DRM, LTC

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Got this letter after voicing my frustration at not having any advance notice to see Noah get his Purple Heart awarded:

Dear Some Soldier's Mom,

I too am a Soldier's Mom, actually I have two soldiers and one airman, all since 2002 from May - November they all joined. I have really enjoyed your blog and have been praying for Noah and a full recovery for him as well as strength for you.

Today's blog was especially moving as I work in a landscape company and was so sorry to hear about your other son's boss. Joe will be added to my prayer list.

Hearing of your frustration in the Army's short notice program brought back such memories for me. When our #1 son was in Afghanistan he was with the *** ID out of ***. My husband and I found that getting information out of *** to us in Colorado was non-existent. When it came time for our son to come home we wanted to be there to greet him and planning our trip and trying to get the best airline rates was touch and go... with prayers and luck we were able to get it arranged and just hoped that it really did happen at the time it was supposed to. We had to arrive at least 6 days before "the date" as it could always be early... and have enough time after "the date" to be able to see our son for his immediate pass. We reactivated his cell phone so that when he got into US air space / territory he could call us. When they made their last stop in Seattle he called and we started to plan when we should go to the post and it wasn't until one hour before they were going to be there that we got the official call from the **ID. If we had waited to hear from the Army we would have still been in Colorado!! Now he's in TX with the *** at least he's in the contiguous 48 and it's easier for him to get home. So I understand your frustration, and I hope that someone will take pictures for you.

Thank you for your blog, it's always a joy to read about another parent's views of what their kids are going thru. LP, Mom of Three Serving our Nation

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Dr. John Driscoll was Noah's physician when he was born severely premature; I had mentioned Dr. Driscoll's name in my birthday post for Noah on his 20th birthday. And it turns out this was an attorney that had an office next door to the law office I worked at in Manhattan!

I wanted to find the email address for [Dr.] John Driscoll, Googled him and found your lovely story about your son (as well as Dr. Driscoll's email address). We recently celebrated our daughter's 21st birthday and are making a donation to the NICU [Neonatal Intensive Care Unit] at Babies Hospital, where E spent her first two months, and wanted to contact Dr. Driscoll for his recommendation on how to direct it. E. weighed a bit more than your son (2 pounds, 15 1/2 ounces) and didn't have all of the same challenges but she still seems a miracle to us as well. She's a junior at Oberlin College and thriving (she may not feel that way just now, in the middle of finals). Thanks for sharing your story and best wishes to you and your son. Dr. Driscoll is such a remarkable person who has affected so many lives.

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Dear Soldier's Mom,
I'm a newspaper editor, formerly embedded with [***] armor in ** bge 3ID.

I hope your son is OK. I'm writing because I saw he's in the same battalion as Michael [a blogger], whose entries I liked a lot, but he stopped blogging abruptly after reporting the death of a Sgt Bohling.

Have you heard anything from him? This is not anything I'm writing about, just personal curiosity. By the way, another reporter here, TC, served with 2/69 Headquarters Company as an intel sgt in the Gulf War, and was briefly with them when he was embedded with a Mass Nat'l Guard unit in Feb and March. Best, J

J, I did get an email from Michael this morning... The text is below. Yup... just as we suspected... Take care. And thanks for asking!

Hey MomC,
Thanks for the email. I'm doing well along with everyone else. We're all just anxious to go home, as you know. I haven't had the time to do the whole blog thing. I never bothered to register because they found out about it when we were back in B***. I might start writing on there again when we get home. Thanks for your concern though. Tell Noah I said hello.

**********

This mother and I correspond. Her son was killed in Iraq. One of his NCOs was eventually charged with and found guilty of Dereliction of Duty and Negligent Homicide. This was part of a dialogue we were having on Casey Sheehan’s mother:

HEY!!!! I've only got this to say. THE press "haunted" me, from 8am on [date], daily, for almost 3 weeks. I have done 3 tv interviews and a local, weekly newspaper (hometown) interview, which lasted 3-1/2 hours. We went to a Memorial Day Service in a little town, 9 miles from home, and how wonderful??? THE F"ING press was there, looking for a story... I have 42 minutes of news footage on vhs and dvd, as it stands now. I have NO desire, to draw attention to myself, or my other 2 kids, and further more, I'm quite sure my husband would divorce and disown me.... AND LAST, BUT NOT LEAST, G* WOULD ROLL OVER IN HIS GRAVE, and proceed to haunt me for the rest of my miserable life... We've worked really hard, picking up the pieces of our lives, and trudging forward, without our star comedian... even though some days he lets us know his spirit is still within our reach....

I think what I’m trying to say is that I have always been very proud of G* (Even on those teenage days that I’d have liked to kill him!) I could NEVER DISRESPECT his life, or memory in any shape, or form. I had my SHITFIT the night the Army knocked on my door, at 9;30 pm. I wasn’t kidding when I said first you scream, & then you puke... and then you have to decide if you're going to open the F*KING door, because you already know, what's going on... this woman is looking for SOMETHING... maybe a movie offer???? I would in no way, shape, or form, associate myself with [organization], not ever, after seeing her performance.

on another subject... did you check out soldiers angels/Germany, yet??? I cried lotza tears, for my son today, also, but preferred the privacy of my own home! gotta go... feel free to pick up the phone .. I'm around, it's remodeling/construction season, in my world... love ya,. D

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Hello, my name is D. I live in a small town near “**. My son, J is serving in the US Army. He deployed to Iraq in Dec. 2005. It has been one of the most difficult things for me to deal with in my life. I have been trying to find support, from other parents who have or are going through the same thing as myself. I really do not know where to turn. I do not feel like I am dealing with this situation very well. If you are interested in corresponding or can give me advice on where to turn, I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you for you time. I hope to hear from you soon. Thank you, D

***********

I just read "The Funeral of SPC Tommy Byrd"

Thanks for the wonderful post about a wonderful soldier. My heart goes out to his family, as well as those who served with him and are hurting.

I'm reading back through some of your posts, and realize what a great Mom Noah has, your support for him is priceless. My son wants to leave for boot camp in January, and if I can be half as supportive as you seem to be, then I'll be doing him a great service.

Keep up your wonderful work. BB (Chief Petty Officer, ret.)

Copyright Some Soldier's Mom 2006. All rights reserved.

Following the Yellow Brick Road

Not so much to see the Wizard (the Congress is on Easter break -- or is that the Spring Holiday?? I digress). We're off to the Milblog Conference in Washington, DC. Watch for coverage on FoxNews and MSNBC... the Pentagon Channel.

Official Conference Bloggers:

Kit and Heidi from Euphoric Reality

Lynn from GunnNutt

La Shawn from La Shawn Barber's Corner

Holly from Soldiers’ Angels – Holly Aho

Lisa and Chris from Two Babes and a Brain

Lots of live blogging going on so you can follow the discussions and "hear" what we have to say with your eyes...

AND A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY WONDERFUL LITTLE STEREO SPEAKER... SOMEWHERE ON THE ROAD IN THE "DARKSTAR BUS" ON A WEST COAST HIGHWAY.

A Meme from Capt. Z

So TCOverride (that would be Captain Zeigenfuss at From My Position... On the Way), sends a meme. His answers are HERE.

1. What issues are going to be most critical in the next Presidential election?

Immigration ('cause I live in Arizona and see first hand the impact it has on quality of life for Americans), Iran (because they were scary before they were pursuing nukes), Iraq (because people have lost faith and are getting antsy), Social Security ('cause I'd like to collect mine), the economy (because we're retired and a strong economy is good for us... and for our children so they don't want or need to move back in with us.)

2. Should convicted felons re-gain rights to vote, own or carry guns, hold public office, and serve on a jury?

No. That's supposed to be part of the punishment and deterrent to anti-social behavior (which is what all felonies are. Jail alone doesn't seem to deter career criminals but who knows what element of society that does respond to the combination of all or some of these?

3. Should the government legalize illicit drugs, thereby allowing tax revenues and easing the burden on prisons for drug-related crimes?

If we were talking about drugs that allowed people to still be productive, working, contributing and taxpaying members of society that could also care for and be fiscally responsible for their families and actually reduced crime... OK. But I challenge someone to tell me which drugs that are currently illegal that allows that to occur? You are talking about addictive substances that are sought for the mind altering effects. How can you be a junkie/addict spending your money on dope and still work, pay taxes, care for your family, and pay the bills. Then you have a whole new "audience" for these highly addictive but now legal drugs. Maybe we should only let the government control the supply, sale and price so as to funnel the billions away from the black market? I think this is a Pandora's box best left locked.

4. What is the best thing that ever happened to you, outside of marriage, and children?

Well, that's silly because my husband and my children are what I measure the rest of my life against. If I have to pick, my siblings and my friends (those I already know and those I've yet to meet).

5. If you had one wish, what would it be?

I wish for World Peace and love for everyone. Really. I am so tired of all the hate and partisanship based on political party, race, religion, geography... I am a child of the early 50's -- just coming out of WWII, then there was the Korean War (spare me the "conflict, not war"), Vietnam, Gulf War, Bosnia, Kosovo, OEF, OIF... I'm sure there are more I'm not mentioning but it's late and I've had Easter Punch and my historical time line (and my head) are all fuzzy. Tired of wars and conflicts. Tired of who's fighting and tired of worrying about who's spoiling for a fight. Tired of hate and intolerance. Just want Peace and Love. For everyone.

Thanks, Chuck! Hope you're feeling better! See you at the Milblog Conference later this week!

Copyright 2006. All rights reserved.

Wounded Troops, Hilton Corp. and Fran O'Brien's

The wonderful and talented Andi over at Andi's World has an update on the discussions and impasse between the Hilton Corporation and Fran O'Brien's at the Capital Hilton in DC... and the effect on the dinners for our wounded troops from Walter Reed Medical Center. Go over and check it out; you have an opportunity to leave questions for the Hilton rep. via the comments at Andi's blog. I sure hope that this all works out for everyone involved... and for a good look at the situation, be sure to check out The Mudville Gazette.

2006 Milblog Conference - Countdown!

2006 Milblog Conference

ONE WEEK TO GO!!

If you have not registered yet, there is still opportunity to attend! GO HERE TO REGISTER. (oh, and here's a helpful hint... only hit the "Submit Form" button once... you will not get a confirmation response... just check the "Conference Registrants" list to see if you're registered -- that list updates almost immediately!)

The 2006 Milblog Conference

APRIL 22, 2006, Washington, DC

The 2006 Milblog Conference is designed to bring milbloggers together for one full day of interesting discussion on topics associated with milblogging, and will explore the history of milblogs, as well as what the future may hold for this medium which the military community is using to tell their stories.

Registration for this event is free of charge. All registrations are first-come, first-serve.

For our troops and others who are unable to attend the event, live video feed of the conference will be available so that you can log-on and watch the conference from any location worldwide.

A very, very heartfelt thank you to the Departmental Network of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, who have graciously donated time and resources to this conference and have been invaluable to this effort. The VFW designed the conference site and will be running the video feed. And a special thank you to Military.com for sponsoring various aspects of the conference, including the luncheon scheduled for April 22.

SO GET ON OVER AND SIGN UP!!! HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!!!

The conference will be held at the AED Conference Center.

To pay for that venue, the National Hidden Heroes Foundation has agreed to donate up to $5,000 worth of proceeds from an innovative project they are currently working on.

Recently, singer Barbara Fairchild recorded a very touching song dedicated to the Hidden Heroes, those who are left behind, the families of deployed troops. Barbara's song, "The Hidden Heroes" will be paired with a flash video presentation to be created by Todd Clegg. When the flash presentation is ready, it will be offered for download for a minimum contribution of $1. Contributions over $1 will be donated to the Milblog Conference. The first $5,000 will help pay for the Milblog Conference.

Please make your contribution today, and when the download is available, you will be notified by email.

The best thing is that you can be a part of this flash presentation, or others. Have some digital photos you would like to contribute to these creative projects which pay tribute to our troops and their families? If so, send them to veteransfoundation@gmail.com with the word "flash" in the subject line.

You can listen to The Hidden Heroes here (click on the black box in the post). Please consider giving a few dollars to help with the Milblog Conference and tributes to our troops, and their families.

The conference is not sponsored, sanctioned, censored by, or in any way affiliated with the Department of Defense.

College Idiots...

From the Army Times:

Recruiters leave college job fair

Associated Press

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Military recruiters left a campus job fair when about 60 student and faculty anti-war demonstrators showed up outside the event at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Four recruiters from the Army and Army National Guard left after an hour-long standoff Tuesday at the College 8 West Field House.

“The recruiters thought the crowd was getting out of control,” campus vice chancellor David Kliger said.

“This is about creating a community where we make the change we want to see in the world,” student Sam
Aranke said.

One student protester was arrested as the recruiters were departing in a van. While a campus police officer was videotaping a person throwing rocks at the van, a student blocked the camera and was cited for interfering with police duties, campus spokesman Jim Burns.

The student was released pending a decision by the district attorney’s office on whether charges would be filed.

*******

“This is about creating a community where we make the change we want to see in the world,” student Sam Aranke said. OK, not enough drug busting going on at this campus or too much tinfoiling going on...

What world exactly does this child live in? Certainly not the real world where the Taliban and al-Queda exist... the people that would torture and behead him for voicing an opinion.

Certainly not the real world where Iran is developing nuclear weapons (please don't give me that crap about needing an alternate energy source for a country with the 3rd largest oil reserves in the world... puuuhleeze).

Certainly not the real world where countries like North Korea and Iran threaten their neighbors with military harm because their ideologies are not the same as their neighbors? Countries that have vowed to wipe other countries off the map? Countries that do not hesitate to interfere in the politics and dealings of the democratically elected government of neighboring countries?

Certainly not in a world where the likes of Saddam Hussein still exist. And then there's Bosnia... and Kosovo... and Darfur... I repeat, what world does this child and those people live in?

Can this idiot really believe that "his world" can exist without a strong and effective, well-trained military?? Just who (or is that whom?) does he think will protect and safeguard his right to assemble? His freedom of speech (you know, in this case, his right to be wrong!)? Who will stand and guard all his freedoms and his way of life? Certainly not little pantywaisted students throwing rocks (throwing rocks?? throwing rocks??) at people trying to do their jobs.

If these people -- including the supposedly well-educated professors -- object to the war, why aren't they out harrassing and picketing the elected members of Congress? And why do they believe that the exercise of their right to an opinion is greater than the rights of others expressing theirs, e.g., by speaking with the recruiters and joining the military, which, I might add, is an honest and honorable profession? The recruiters didn't invent the military or the need for one.

I have said before: these kind of people just need to get out of the way and let the recruiters do their jobs. There is no strongarming going on. We have an all volunteer military comprised of people who can see the larger picture and know that only in a utopian world can there be no need for the military. And unless you live in the world of these 60 protesters, that world does not yet exist.

Copyright 2006. All rights reserved.

Get on over to ThirdWaveDave's and find out how you can help some patriots and friends who spend a lot of time and energy helping our wounded soldiers.

REMEMBER THAT SGT. MATT MAUPIN REMAINS MISSING IN IRAQ

LONE U.S. SOLDIER REMAINS MISSING
By Joyce Howard Price
THE WASHINGTON TIMES

-----------------------------------------------------------

Sunday will mark the second anniversary of the capture near Baghdad of Army Reserve Sgt. Keith Matthew "Matt" Maupin of Batavia, Ohio, the only U.S. soldier not accounted for in the three years of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

While more than 2,300 U.S. service members have been killed in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion and more than 17,000 have been wounded, Sgt. Maupin is the only one officially listed as "missing/captured" and his whereabouts unknown.

The sergeant's parents, Keith and Carolyn Maupin, think their son is still alive, even though the Arabic-language TV network Al Jazeera, reported June 28, 2004, that he had been executed. The Pentagon says it does not know whether Sgt. Maupin is dead or alive, calling a dark and grainy video it obtained that purports to show the sergeant being shot in the back of the head "inconclusive." Military officials say they don't know if the shooting victim was Sgt. Maupin, since the man in the tape is blindfolded and his face is not shown. Some Army officers have suggested that the gunmen in the video shot a dummy.

"We don't want them to quit looking for Matt. He hasn't been found yet, so they are not doing all they can do. I know if they did more, they'd find him," Mr. Maupin said in a telephone interview.

He added he is grateful for the calls and e-mails he receives once each week from an Army casualty assistance officer. The message is always the same, Mr. Maupin said: "The status of Matt is unchanged, and he's still listed as captured." But he said the officials do their best to answer all his questions.

"The Maupins have been very cooperative and very patient," said Shari Lawrence, deputy public affairs officer for the U.S. Army Human Resources Command. "Matt represents the soldiers and families of all those who have not come home. We make a promise we will do everything to find them, and we're constantly on the lookout" for Sgt. Maupin.

Mr. Maupin said he was encouraged by the release Thursday of Jill Carroll, a freelance reporter for the Christian Science Monitor, who was kidnapped in Iraq nearly four months earlier. He said he hopes that positive development leads to more intense efforts to find his son.

Roger Hall, a Silver Spring man who has been involved in prisoner of war issues since 1993 and who keeps in touch with the Maupin family, shares that hope. He worries that the press and many Americans seem to have forgotten the plight of Sgt. Maupin, and that frightens him, since many are saying the unrelenting attention that focused on Miss Carroll may have saved her life and led to her release.

Mr. Hall says he would also like to locate any persons or groups that may have been involved in negotiations for Miss Carroll's release to see if they might help find Sgt. Maupin.

Mr. Maupin is active in a Cincinnati-based organization called the Yellow Ribbon Support Center that's all about remembering his missing son and other heroes of Operation Iraqi Freedom from the Cincinnati area. On Sunday, the group will hold a fundraiser called "Let Us Never Forget," with a goal to raise $100,000 in scholarships to honor local soldiers.

Mr. Maupin says he has examined still images the Army made from the shooting tape that aired on Al Jazeera and could not determine whether the man's jaw he saw on the clearest picture was his son's. "You can't tell anything from that video. The Army tried to enhance it for three months, but did not succeed," so the images also are not distinct, he said.

Sgt. Maupin was a 20-year-old private first class in the Army Reserve's 724th Transportation Company when a fuel truck convoy that his company was guarding was ambushed on April 9, 2004, by Iraqi insurgents near the Baghdad airport.

Five drivers were killed in the attack. Sgt. Maupin, who was riding shotgun on one of the trucks, was taken captive, along with two other Americans in the convoy. Then-Pvt. Maupin became a sergeant with two promotions that have occurred in absentia since his kidnapping.

On April 16, Sgt. Maupin and the two other U.S. hostages appeared in a video on Al Jazeera and identified themselves. Seven days later, Sgt. Elmer Krause, 40, of Greensboro, N.C., was found slain. Hostage Thomas Hamill, a civilian contractor from Macon, Miss., escaped from his captors May 2 and was recovered by U.S. forces near Tikrit.

Miss Lawrence of the Army's Human Resources Command said that agency has one year and a day after an incident like the convoy ambush to review a missing soldier's file to determine whether to change his classification. Sgt. Maupin, she said, "has never come out of the status of 'missing/captured,' " since no body has been found and no other "hard evidence" warrants a change.

"I know they are looking for Matt," said his father. He said he saw a report that British military personnel, as well as investigators from the Army and Marines, were looking for his son's possible burial site somewhere in the Iraqi desert about a week ago. They were following up a tip, but didn't find a grave, Mr. Maupin said.

"We can't make them find Matt. But I'm confident that when my son's job is done, he'll be home," he said.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

WE HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN YOU, MATT. WE PRAY FOR YOUR SAFE RETURN. I cannot begin to imagine the heartache the Maupin family endures. Our prayers are with them.

01:02:03 04/05/06

Kind of neat to think about... I think I'll be sleeping...

On Wednesday, at two minutes and three seconds after 0100 (that's 1:00 in the morning), the time and date will be 01:02:03 04/05/06.

That won't ever happen again.

ok, Update: from the mathematician sister (that would be Miss Mary Christmas): it will happen again in 100 years and every hundred years... (sheesh...) and then she says, won't it be cool later this year when it's 06:06:06 06/06/06 (sheesh again.)

Do YOU Support the War in Iraq?

???

The local paper is conducting a survey:

Do YOU support the war in Iraq?

Please select one:

Yes. Life is slowly improving and we are helping to establish democracy there.

No. The loss of human life is too great and progress there is virtually nonexistent.

Never have, never will.


As of midnight Sunday it was 39-18-10.

Go vote HERE (lower left corner).

2006 Military Blogger Conference

THIS IS FROM BLACKFIVE TODAY. HE SAID IT SO WELL AND I’M RUSHED FOR TIME TODAY, I THOUGHT I’D JUST PUT THIS UP… HOPE YOU DON’T MIND, B5!

Andi's World has a post about how you can help to support the Military Blogger Conference (April 22) and take part in a very interesting project:

We have a great venue for our conference, the AED Conference Center. To pay for that venue, the National Hidden Heroes Foundation has agreed to donate up to $5,000 worth of proceeds from an innovative project they are currently working on. Recently, singer Barbara Fairchild recorded a very touching song dedicated to the Hidden Heroes, those who are left behind, the families of deployed troops. Many of us are aware of the sacrifices made by the families of our troops. These families serve their country too, quietly and with incredible dignity.

Barbara's song, The Hidden Heroes, will be paired with a flash video presentation to be created by Todd Clegg, an example of his work can be viewed here (sound file). When the flash presentation is ready, it will be offered for download for a minimum contribution of $1. Contributions over $1 will be donated to the Milblog Conference. The first $5,000 will help pay for the Milblog Conference. You can go ahead and make your contribution today, and when the download is available, you will be notified by email.

The best thing is that you can be a part of this flash presentation, or others. Have some digital photos you would like to contribute to these creative projects which pay tribute to our troops and their families? If so, send them to veteransfoundation@gmail.com with the word "flash" in the subject line.

You can listen to The Hidden Heroes here (click on the black box in the post). Please consider giving a few dollars to help with the Milblog Conference and tributes to our troops, and their families.