For Special Operations Forces, a Rare Public Spotlight

NY Times ^ | 6-11-05 | RICHARD W. STEVENSON

[Pharmboy]

Chris O'Meara/Associated Press
Vice President Dick Cheney Friday
with Master Sgt. Donald R.
Hollenbaugh, who was awarded
the Distinguished Service Cross.June 11, 2005

TAMPA, Fla., June 10 - Vice President Dick Cheney paid public tribute on Friday to military personnel who often work deep in the shadows, bestowing awards on five Special Operations soldiers for heroism in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In a ceremony at the Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base and in a subsequent speech, Mr. Cheney drew attention both to the actions of the individuals he honored and what he said was the growing importance of Special Operations in battling the insurgency in Iraq, rooting out Al Qaeda and Taliban forces in Afghanistan and heading off terrorism around the world.

"Special ops, it's been said, play every role from warrior to physician to diplomat to engineer, and at times you have to switch from one role to the other in the blink of an eye," Mr. Cheney said at the concluding session of a meeting of Special Operations commanders from the United States and 59 other nations, including Iraq and Afghanistan. "It's also in the nature of your business that the best work goes unrecognized until years after the fact, if ever. And we may never know all the grief that has been spared because of you."

[Pharmboy]

Quite impressive, all around.

[leadpenny]

There was a thread yesterday which indicated the Army would allow commissioning to the age of 42. As long as he didn't lose any pay, Master Sgt. Donald R. Hollenbaugh should be offered a commission right now. Maybe in the grade of Captain.

[Pharmboy]

That would have my vote...

[Valin]

Vice President Dick Cheney paid public tribute on Friday to military personnel who often work deep in the shadows, bestowing awards on five Special Operations soldiers for heroism in Iraq and Afghanistan.


This war should be called the iceberg war, because about 90% of it is below the surface and out of sight.

[Pharmboy]

Also honored was Sgt. First Class Stephan Johns of the Army, 40, from Atlantic City, a sniper who served on a Special Operations team in Afghanistan. On May 30 of last year, he was in the last helicopter of a group mounting an assault on Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters in a valley in northeast Afghanistan.

His job was to shoot at the enemy from the air to provide cover to ground forces. But when his helicopter was hit and briefly forced down, he jumped out to set up a one-man defensive wall between a group of enemy fighters and the main American assault group. Alone on the ground for 30 minutes before being picked up by another helicopter, he killed nine enemy fighters who repeatedly rushed him, he said in an interview before being presented with the Silver Star, the third-highest honor for military valor.

Amazing young man...

[csvset]

Vice President Dick Cheney, left, awards U.S. Navy Chief Boatswain's Mate Donald Stokes, the Bronze Star Medal during a ceremony Friday afternoon June 10, 2005 in Tampa, Fla. Stokes was awarded the medal for heroic achievement as a SEAL joint tactical air controller during 18 days of continuous combat in Fallujah, Iraq. (Chris O'Meara / AP)

[Pharmboy]

Thanks for posting. Chief Bosun's Mate Stokes deserves that smile on his face as VP Cheney adds to the tin and ribbons on his chest. Excellent.

[csvset]

Vice President Dick Cheney, left, awards U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Stephan Johns the Silver Star during a ceremony Friday afternoon, June 10, 2005, at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Fla. Johns was awarded the medal for gallantry in action against an armed hostile force in Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

[HarleyLady27]

Excellent!!! All pure class, from the Bush Administration on down the ranks....eat your heart Dems....you'll never have this much class!

[bubman]

Simple question guys: Does this upstanding soldier vote democratic or republican?

Ok stop laughing!!

That is why the rats will never ever be respected by the military.

semper fidelis

[BradyLS]

Special Operations heroes bump!

Congratulations, warriors!

[jwalsh07]

Yes. God bless them and those like them.

[joesnuffy]

What? and lose status?...:)

[Pharmboy]

Thanks for posting--another well-earned smile.