[ALOHA RONNIE]

...In this most Spiritual of weekends I was afforded an opportunity I never dreamed that I would ever have.

...Those of you know my work here on...

.. http://www.Freerepublic.com ..

...know that I fought Gen. SHINSEKI's decision to take the Black Beret away from U.S. Army Rangers, thru his transferring it to all Army Regular Troops to wear. Not the least of my concerns then was the fact that batches of these Army Berets were going to be made in Communist China, which was later rescinded.

...After my having seen the difference in the Prideful Strut of all Army Troopers wearing these Black Berets, along with their CAMI Fatigues, when we IA DRANG Veterans were at Ft. Benning to see a preview of "WE WERE SOLDIERS".. I had some real apologizing to do to the Man I had targeted, even though I have already expressed my changed impression online and on Talk Radio.

...An Apology I promply made in person after our IA DRANG Dinner with the above explanation to the General. The General explained to me that it was his Army Sgt/Majors that told him that if Beret wearing was going Army wide then they wanted them to be Black so that they wouldn't have to be constantly having to tell troopers to clean their Berets during Army Inspections..!

...Who would have thought that this most Spiritual of nights would have ended with our former General of the Army SHINSEKI and I embracing in the middle of a Room filled with some of America's greatest Heroes..?

...In my yearly IA DRANG Alumni Conference Call into the BOB DORNAN Show Monday BOB DORNAN shared how he would have been 2nd in line behind me making the same apology to General SHINSEKI for the same reason. BOB went on to further explain yesterday that the new sand color Beret of the Army Rangers is now just as honored as their former Black Beret was ..'cause of their recent actions in the Gulf and Iraqi Wars in the Desert. Amazing.

...Esprit de Corps is...

...as Esprit de Corps does..?

[onyx]

We'll NEVER FORGET.

[exnavy]

Thank you for your service to this fine country of ours. Thanks also for the links and posts here. Your stories remind me of the terrible cost of war. I'm thankful to God that I never have been near a combat zone. Thank you again.

[archy]

...An Apology I promply made in person after our IA DRANG Dinner with the above explanation to the General. The General explained to me that it was his Army Sgt/Majors that told him that if Beret wearing was going Army wide then they wanted them to be Black so that they wouldn't have to be constantly having to tell troopers to clean their Berets during Army Inspections..!

AR, I am really glad to hear that. I too thought the army-wide issue of the black beret was a slap at the Rangers and the tank crews who had worn the black berets in Vietnam. For that very reason those knowledgable SMAJs noted, the tankers found black berets most suitable, and are the traditional choice of the British, Israelis, Russians, and others. The beret can be rolled and tucked into a coveralls pocket when the tank crewman's commo helmet isn't worn, and is more practical stuffed inside those helmets than any other headgear save possibly the Navy knit watch cap. The Army-wide adoption of the new MICH helmet suitable for use with commo headsets and microphone to replace the Kevlar *K-Pot* suggests that other troopers besides tankers will find that true of their berets as well.

I always though the REAL headgear of the Rangers was the patrol cap, worn back in the days of the detested general-issue baseball cap when a floppy bush hat or helmet wasn't the better choice, but the commonality of the tan Ranger beret with the *sandhats* of the British and Australian S.A.S. regiment has been generally noted as appropriate by those in both the British and American services, and offers swell opportunities for a little off-duty trading between brother services.

I still have my doubts about the Stryker wheeled combat vehicle that General Shinseki similarly pushed on the service during his tenure, and I hope that decision proves to be as eventually suitable as the one about headgear was. But in the meantime I retain the strongest doubts and suspicions of a former infantryman and tank crewman as to the vehicle's ability to perform as described; we shall see, and we can hope.

But at least your Shinseki story gives us some good reason to keep that hope going till the first Stryker war stories, good or bad, come back. -archy-/-

[Joy Angela]

You are blowing me away.

Thank you for bringing the
spirit home from Washington D.C.
and sharing it here.

*Those Freedom Fighters of 1776
just didn't know what they started.
(Or did they?)

Glory to the First Freedom Fighter
freed from the shackles of death,
who inspires and liberates all those
to follow!

Jesus Christ.

How His spirit lives on!