Flight Pundit

Where do we find men with honor? In the US Marine Corps, thats where.

Spanky Gibson was shot by a sniper in May of 2006 while on foot patrol in Ramadi, Iraq. When the firefight was over, his left leg was gone.

But Gunnery Sgt. William Gibson, a decorated Marine, didn’t stop serving his country, even after his leg was amputated above the knee. He didn’t settle for a desk job stateside, either. He’s back in Iraq — his second tour — on active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps.

Amazing. To say the least…

“The first thing that went through my mind was, get my weapon out and function,” he said. “I knew there was something seriously wrong with me — the round luckily enough severed the nerve, so there was no pain.

Something about that training Marines get keeps them focused on the battle and not themselves.

By July of 2006, only two months after his was shot, Gibson was back at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. The experience was marked by a series of firsts: the first time he got back into his uniform; the first time he walked, with crutches on his new prosthetic leg; the first time he was back training with his fellow Marines. That’s when he knew he had to go back to Iraq.

“That was my first step,” he said, “the first step to feeling like I was still a Marine.”

He remembers all the camaraderie and gratitude coming from the other servicemen and women for the sacrifices he’d made in combat. It was then, he said, when he knew he had to go on.

“I definitely felt the obligation to stay in the Marine Corps and pay back that honor,” Gibson said. “Because it is an honor to wear the uniform, and I realized that very quickly.”

This is one of the most inspiring stories I have read about wounded Marines getting ON with their lives- be that going back to Iraq or not. This Gunny isn’t about to sit around and feel sorry for himself or dwell on his injuries…we need to be proud of men like him.

Semper Fi Gunnery Sgt. Spanky Gibson

Be sure to check out his photos too!

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In many ways, I’m going to miss President Bush.

I have issues with President Bush. I don’t agree at all with some of his policies. But when it comes to foreign policy and tyrant leaders in the world, he stands heads over tails taller than just about any other person. Especially Barack ObOmB.

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Senators Introduce Semper Fi Act of 2008
Bill Stops Berkeley Earmarks and Transfers Funds to Marine Corps

February 6th, 2008 - Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina), Saxby Chambliss (R-Georgia), Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-Oklahoma), John Cornyn (R-Texas), James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma), and David Vitter (R-Louisiana) introduced the Semper Fi Act of 2008. The bill would rescind over $2 million in hidden earmarks for Berkeley, California in the 2008 Omnibus Appropriations bill, and transfer the funds to the Marine Corps. U.S. Congressman John Campbell (R-California) is introducing a companion bill in the House of Representatives.
Last week, the City Council of Berkeley voted to oust Marine Corps recruiters from their downtown office, saying the Marines were “uninvited and unwelcome intruders.” Berkeley officials also voted to give the radical protest group Code Pink space outside the recruitment office and urged them to “impede, passively or actively” the work of Marine Corps recruiters.
One earmark provides $243,000 in taxpayer dollars for the organization Chez Panisse to create gourmet organic school lunches in the Berkeley School District. Chez Panisse is dedicated to “environmental harmony” and their menu features “Comté cheese soufflé with mâche salad,” “Meyer lemon éclairs with huckleberry coulis,” and “Chicory salad with creamy anchovy vinaigrette and olive toast.”
Another earmark would spend $975,000 in taxpayer dollars for the University of California in Berkeley Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service, to create a new endowment and cataloging the papers of Congressman Robert Matsui. U.C. Berkeley currently already has a $3.5 billion endowment.
Senator DeMint: “Berkeley needs to learn that their actions have consequences. Patriotic American taxpayers won’t sit quietly while Berkeley insults our brave Marines and tries to run them out of town. Berkeley City Council members have shown complete ingratitude to our military and their families, and the city doesn’t deserve a single dime of special pet project handouts.”
Senator Cornyn: “The Berkeley City Council insulted our troops and offended people across the country. If the U.S. Marines are not good enough for Berkeley, neither are taxpayer dollars Congress would have sent there this year. That city closed its doors on the same individuals taking bullets on the front lines while fighting for the safety and freedom of families in Berkeley and throughout America.”
Senator Vitter: “The actions of the City Council of Berkeley are in stark contrast to beliefs of the vast majority of Americans who recognize and honor the service and sacrifice of our U.S. Marines. This is simply unacceptable and those funds could be better utilized by the Marine Corps.”
Dr. Coburn: “The actions by the city of Berkeley are deplorable and insulting to those who are serving and those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice to protect the very freedoms that are being exercised to insult them. I know I stand with the majority of Americans in thanking our service men and women for their selfless service to our nation.”
Senator Inhofe: “Unfortunately, those on the Berkeley city council do not seem to understand the sacrifice of the brave men and women of the United States Marine Corps. By interfering with military recruiting, the city of Berkeley is hampering our ability to protect this nation. While the city of Berkeley and the protestors are free to say whatever they like, free speech is not a protection from consequence.”
Senator Chambliss: “We need to send a strong message that our military personnel deserve our strongest support. Georgia is a proud military state, and my constituents will be out outraged to know that during a time of war, their taxpayers dollars have been used to reward folks who have insulted and disparaged those who defend this nation every day.”  

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Two Marines are being railroaded. They’re heroes and don’t deserve this…but the shiny Pentagon brass asses want to hang them out to crucify. This is political correctness gone MAD. Please help the Marines involved.

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National Post has a store on the snow cover world wide

Snow cover over North America and much of Siberia, Mongolia and China is greater than at any time since 1966.

Is this a 40 year cycle?

And remember the Arctic Sea ice? The ice we were told so hysterically last fall had melted to its “lowest levels on record? Never mind that those records only date back as far as 1972 and that there is anthropological and geological evidence of much greater melts in the past.

The ice is back.

that last two parts are the important ones…it has happened before and it will happen again. I just want to know when the wacko’s start calling for another ice age?

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If you own or work for a liquor store in Colorado you soon might have to work on Sundays to compete .

Sunday liquor sales have not been allowed in Colorado since 1933, when Prohibition was lifted.

It has sometimes bitten me in the ass when I want a football party and forget to stock up on Saturday for Sunday Drinks.

I have heard the owners complain on the radio about this proposal,  that they only get 1 day a week off and the law makes it so they can compete with the big box stores that are open 24×7.

Boo Hoo whiners. Either Open on Sunday or sell the business. and let the Grocery stores sell  the good stuff.

Maybe we will get lower prices on our booze…..

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Osama, Osama Bama, Barack Obama Sponsored a bill that will tax every American and give it to the UN to give to the rest of the world.

Legislation > 2007-2008 (110^th Congress)

S. 2433: Global Poverty Act of 2007

A bill to require the President to develop and implement a comprehensive strategy to further the United States foreign policy objective of promoting the reduction of global poverty, the elimination of extreme global poverty, and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goal of reducing by one-half the proportion of people worldwide, between 1990 and 2015, who live on less than $1 per day.

Now, American would get what recognition from giving free money to poor countries? 

Sponsor:

Sen. Barack Obama [D-IL]

Cosponsors [as of 2008-02-14]

Sen. Joseph Biden [D-DE]

Sen. Maria Cantwell [D-WA]

Sen. Christopher Dodd [D-CT]

Sen. Richard Durbin [D-IL]

Sen. Russell Feingold [D-WI]

Sen. Dianne Feinstein [D-CA]

Sen. Charles Hagel [R-NE]

Sen. Richard Lugar [R-IN]

Sen. Robert Menéndez [D-NJ]

And would we see any benefits from this TAX? Would this really only make the poor countries more dependent on US TAXES?

Will the governments of these extreme poor countries use this money to build and grow their own economies?  Or would they build personal palaces for themselves and buy cars and step on the population more? And would they then ask for more because the people are still in poverty?

These Socialists that want to take the money I work very hard for and give it willy nilly to the lazy buggers of the world.

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Russ Vaughn points to his latest writing over at Old War Dogs.

Before you go there though, check out this web site, which introduces us to Chronic Marine Syndrome:

Symptoms to look for are:

1. Pride in oneself and the organization they represent.
2. A strong willingness to put in extra attention to detail to get the job done.
3. May wear articles of Marine clothing; T-shirts, jackets, watches, well into their 80’s.
4. Will not hesitate to stand up or put their hand over their heart, or even salute when the National Anthem is played.
5. Does not succumb easily to political correctness.
6. Is sure of who they are.
7. Is often either respected or hated by others, due to their abilities and talents.
8. May donate toys to needy kids at Christmas.
9. Some have been known to wear their hair in a high and tight well into their 90’s.
10. Will look you in the eye when talking to you.
11. Will give you a firm handshake.
12. Knows what honor, courage and commitment mean.
13. Can usually be found in some type of leadership position in whatever organization they work for.
14. Will often regard their drill instructors with the same respect as their parents.
15. Often found in either law enforcement or various professions.
16. Is extremely thorough at what they do.
17. Does not wear a bunch of patches to adorn their uniform. Their title of Marine is often sufficient.
18. Often arrives at work earlier than expected. If they wear a shirt and tie in their job, you might see the tie clip. between the third and fourth button centered.
19. Had spent time training at one of two places; Parris Island or San Diego.
20. May be able to field strip their rifle, up to 60 years after leaving active duty.
21. Can recite the nomenclature of the M1, M14 or M16.
22. May often have his pencils sharpened to a perfect precision point.
23. Will not back down from a fight.

…again, don’t ask me why Jarheads make me oh so horny.

XPosted @ ARS

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Gut Check for the Commandant United States Marine Corps.

Some people make the case better than others. This one is absolutely to the point and dead center. 

Open Letter to the Commandant of the United States Marine Corps concerning the 3/1 Haditha Marines

Since the invasion of Iraq, I have been reading every piece of material and watching every news story I came across about the war. Books entitled My Men are Heroes and No True Glory now sit in my bookcases along with books such as With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa, Victory at High Tide and Fire in the Streets.  I focus on the war because, at least for this old Marine, it is a tremendous source of pride, especially, when I read about and watch Marines in combat.  From the Iraq invasion, to battles in Ramadi and Fallujah, I have been deeply impressed with the Marine Corps newest generation of combat veterans. This generation of Marines understands their history and their combat legacy.

I am concerned, however, that my feeling about the Marine Corps leadership is changing significantly. The Marine Corps survival is a testament to its past senior leadership. Marine General Officers, especially the Commandant, have a legacy of doing the right thing, in the right way, for the right reason, despite political pressure to conform to the organizations like the Department of Defense.

I am a retired Marine coming from a Marine family. My brother Tom and I both served in Desert Shield/Storm. Dad was a para-Marine at Guadalcanal and a retired Sergeant Major. Dad was with Edison on Bloody Ridge the night a Japanese reinforced brigade attack the “Chutes” and Raiders.  A recent book entitled Battalion of the Damned by James Christ, captures that incredible story how Marines, outnumbered, starved, sick and short supplied, managed to prevail over a numerically superior enemy. Their division commander was General Alexander Vandergrift; Medal of Honor recipient, 18^th Commandant and the Marine Corps and the first Marine four star general.

As Commandant, the Army, President Truman and General Eisenhower besieged General Vandegrift in a post war attempt to absorb the Marine’s mission into the other services. The Commandant aligned himself with Congress and secured its support and the Marine Corps future with his famous “bended knee speech”. In that speech he stated:

“…Sentiment is not a valid consideration in determining questions of national security. We have pride in ourselves and in our past, but we do not rest our case on any presumed ground of gratitude owing us from the Nation. The bended knee is not a tradition of our Corps. If the Marine as a fighting man has not made a case for himself after 170 years of service, he must go. But I think you will agree with me that he has earned the right to depart with dignity and honor, not by subjugation to the status of uselessness and servility planned for him by the War Department.”

Another Commandant, General David M. Shoup, 22^nd Commandant of the Marine Corps, won his Medal of Honor on the beaches of Tarawa. Despite being wounded, and in the face of heavy causalities, he took command of all Marines on shore and for two days provided the critical leadership to organize attacks from decimated units to secure Tarawa.

While Commandant, General Shoup found the Joints Chiefs of Staff feeling a bit too confident for his taste concerning invasion plans during the Cuban Missile Crisis. He injected a dose of reality with a short but succinct briefing: “First he took an overlay of Cuba and placed it over the map of the United States. To everybody’s surprise, Cuba was not a small island along the lines of, say, Long Island at best. It was about 800 miles long and seemed to stretch from New York to Chicago. Then he took another overlay, with a red dot, and placed it over the map of Cuba. ‘What’s that?’ someone asked him. ‘That, gentlemen, represents the size of the island of Tarawa,’ said Shoup, ‘and it took us three days and 18,000 Marines to take it.” General Shoup would also protest the Viet Nam war.

I talk about these generals as leadership examples that I have come to expect from the Commandant. Of course, their are many others, and names like Shepard, Wilson, and Borrows have all made their mark on the honor rolls of the Marine Corps.

I recently read the Commandant’s “long war” speech made at the Marines’ Memorial Association and World Affairs Council, in San Francisco, California on Wednesday, July 10, 2007. In that speech, you state, “we have a couple of incidents in Afghanistan and Iraq under investigation or engaged in trial.” You further state that you are going to “let those things play out”. In the case of the Haditha Marines, I find this statement not only sophomoric but also embarrassing and dishonest.

I say sophomoric because instead of recognizing a bad news story and being prepared for such incidents, you joined the rush to judgment and added fuel to the Haditha firestorm. Insurgents hide within the people with the expressed purpose of causing civilian casualties. Instead of being prepared for this incident, you were caught flat-footed by misinformation and your reactions aided the enemy. As the senior Marine, you should have been the voice of reason standing against the political rush to judgment unleashed on the Haditha Marines. More is expected from the Commandant when it comes to fighting the information war on the home front.

I say embarrassing because you demonstrated a complete lack of trust in your combat Marines with their relief, investigation and court martial. Instead of consulting with the combat commanders and trusting in their judgment and leadership, you relieved, censor and court martial the entire chain of command from general officer to squad leader.  The US Marine Corps War Fighting Manual (FMFM-1) states, “trust is an essential trait among leaders–trust by seniors in the abilities of their subordinates and by juniors in the competence and support of their seniors. Trust must be earned, and actions which undermine trust must meet with strict censure.”  Instead of censuring, your actions foment distrust within the Marine Corps.

I say dishonest because relieving the chain of command before the completion of the investigations and court martial borders on unlawful influence. These reliefs, letters of censor and investigations demonstrate that you do not intend to “let those things play out” but are intent on leading the persecution with political equivocation. You could have easily stated in your speech that four of the Marines have been found not guilty because they followed their training. After all, at least for those four Marines that is how “things played out”.

The Haditha legal proceedings are an embarrassing comedy of errors. These errors include leaked confidential investigations, prosecution grants of immunity to unreliable witnesses, and the almost whimsical addition of charges against Marines who trust more in their training than you. This tragic and dark comedy reflects directly on the Commandant and certainly deserves more attention than to just “let those things play out”. As Commandant you are responsible for all Marine training. As the trials proceed, it is becoming clear that these Marines followed their training. It is time for the Commandant to do the right thing, in the right way, for the right reason and start supporting the Haditha Marines by telling their story.

If the Commandant can’t support these Marines then the next addition to the Commandant’s reading list should be: Scapegoats of the Empire: The True Story of Breaker Morant’s Bushveldt Carbineers.

Bob Weimann
LtCol USMC Ret
former Commanding Officer Kilo, Company 3/1

8 February, 2008

Could it be time for a new Commandant?

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But if you are a conservative you are fake and hypocritical if think someone else is wrong. According to Charles Barkley the Judge from the left  “Conservatives ‘Fake Christians’“

The level of crap that comes out of these peoples mouths…

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The fact that I grew up here is besides the point and I am non-biased like the Dan Rather….

I went snowmobiling this weekend in Grand Lake. My cabin is covered with snow…(couldn’t shovel it off because of the temperature (solid ICE under the snow).

On the trails to the climbing hills we almost ran into this cow and calf moose…twice over 10 miles apart.

We got off our sleds and away from the trail so they could pass by us as there were other sleds coming from the other side animals.

The Cow watching us! We saw her twice this day, I whish we could help her into the National Park but they were a long ways away. all we could do is get away from her and let them pass.

The Cow

The Calf

I really do love Colorado and seeing the Moose population growing.

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It will start by making people fill good.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate voted Wednesday to prohibit the CIA from using waterboarding and other harsh interrogation methods on terror suspects despite President Bush’s threat to veto any measure that limits the agency’s interrogation techniques.

Next it will be we can not listen in on any people that want to kill us or our friends…

Then Islam Fanatics will destroy us all and it won’t matter.

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Colorado Democrats (the Majority in the house in Colorado) Killed a good bill that would require a photo ID to be allowed to Vote last week.

The House State, Veterans, & Military Affairs Committee killed two bills aimed at stopping fraud after witnesses said there was no evidence there was a problem. One bill (House Bill 1039) would have required voters to present photo identification before they are allowed to vote. Another (House Bill 1177) would have required voters to prove they are U.S. citizens.

This Vote that killed this was 100% Liberal Democrats.

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Out in Berkistan CA the city council has issued a clarification of their recent demand that the USMC leave the city grounds.

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) - City council members who were criticized for telling Marine recruiters they don’t belong here have moderated their position, saying they oppose the Iraq war but support the troops.

The Berkeley City Council voted two weeks ago to send a letter to a downtown recruitment station advising the Marines they were not welcome.

After a marathon session that stretched into early Wednesday, the council decided against sending the letter, saying it recognizes recruiters’ right to be in Berkeley. The council members say they still strongly oppose the war and the recruitment of young people, but “deeply respect and support” the men and women of the armed forces.

Some on the council had pushed for issuing an apology. Others rejected that, saying they just wanted to clarify their position.

I have yet to see any letters telling the Code Pink Menopause Cows they are not welcome either. Oh wait…old hags wearing pink aren’t a part of the USMC…I stand corrected. The harassment of young people who wish to join the Military is Code Pink’s motto, the noisy protests and embarrassing tactics are A OKAY for Berkistan, we know. The quiet and orderly office a USMC recruiting officer is a royal taboo.

Code Pink for Peace, headed by Castro-loving neo-communist and perennial anti-U.S. activist Medea Benjamin, orchestrates the direct-action segment of the counter recruitment movement with the Ruckus Society, an off-shoot of the eco-terrorism group Earth First!

Benjamin’s history with the Ruckus Society goes back to the late 1990s when she helped it plan and execute the violent riots that occurred during the 1999 World Trade Organization (WTO) meeting in Seattle, Washington. As part of Code Pink’s counter-recruitment drive Benjamin has enlisted the Ruckus Society to provide training camps for potential 18-22 year old counter-recruiters.

Ruckus Society training camps provide activists with the tools to organize street protests, shut down recruitment offices and avoid arrest. Those attending the camps are exposed to a constant barrage of anti- capitalist, anti-war, anti-U.S. propaganda. Ruckus also advertises its training camps through its front group, Not Your Soldier, a counter-recruitment organization whose website marquee features an angry looking young man reading a book titled, “History of U.S. Imperialism.”

Freedom. It’s what America is about. When the Pink Menopausal Cows scream and shout, people like me wonder just WHAT is being accomplished. A city like Berkistan is forever stained with the antics of it’s aged hippies and pot smoking citizens…I would be to shamed to live there. Really- are these anti American anti war groups doing any good? No. They are a huge waste of time and money. Maybe the goal is to keep a national spotlight upon the region? It’s a negative light that’s for sure.

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This election cycle is causing a lot of uproar for Conservatives. The thought of John McCain being the GOP nominee is giving many of us headaches and sour stomachs. A number of bloggers have declared they will not support McCain - and this includes voting for him.

McCain deserves all the vile commentary coming at him. He’s a RINO; he’s the Democrats’ favorite Republican. He’s a man who throws temper tantrums; who supports illegal immigration and the businesses that wish to toss Americans from jobs they have always done…McCain voted against President Bush’s tax cuts; he favored a campaign finance deal that almost silenced ALL OF US.

McCain is going to be the ONE. We have choices. We can fully support him and his campaign against either Obama or Chillary…can’t say yet who will win the weak kneed, limp dicked Democrat nomination. We can snub McCain and write in our vote for Fred, or Mitt, or Ron. We can stay home and not participate at all.

No matter what we each decide to do, we will need to be patient.

Rick Moran takes note of an interview McCain gave to the German paper, SPIEGEL. He comes to the same conclusion about McCain as I did:

What a pandering, sycophantic, arrogant popinjay he is.

Indeed.

Reading that entire interview, there were places that you really weren’t sure if you were listening to a Democrat or a Republican, liberal or conservative. This is McCain’s identity and I guess we better get used to it. It is maddening, worrisome, even frightening at times. But that’s being a “maverick” I suppose.

I got ill reading it. It made me more angry to know I am probably going to vote for a man who panders to international, anti American hysteria and hyperbole. It upsets me see McCain bowing down to the EuropEon community and bash an outgoing President; it shames me to see this man go Al Bore on Global Warming, which is shady science at it’s best and downright lying and fear mongering at it’s worst.

It pisses me off to know this man claims to be a true conservative when he is anything BUT that. It bothers me a whole lot to KNOW that once he gets behind the desk in the Oval office, we’ll see an influx of illegal immigrants like we’ve never seen before. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Fat Teddy Kennedy and President McCain bring their awful shamesty legislation back to life. It wouldn’t shock me one bit to see our voices silenced with new laws about political speech including blogging to be regulated.

It’s a sad time in American history to know that the choices we have for our leader are not good for America…the potential and probable candidates will work hard to remove personal freedoms and choices from each of us.

SO voting for McCain may be the alternative to seeing Obama or Chillary become President; but the vote will come with a lot of mistrust, total disgust and some loss of sleep. Doing the popular thing might be to vote for McCain, but I’m not sure it’s the right thing to do. The argument of the less evils is valid, I suppose in this election.

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