Free Republic

Vetertans for Constitutional Restoration (VetsCoR) is re-organizing to further our purpose and goals. We are firm in our cause and now require professional writers to express our position. VetCoR is looking for volunteers who can articulate our goals and inform Joe-six-pack & Soccor Mom and all Americans about the loss of rights they continue to lose. If you are interested and have the writing skills, please reply on this thread or privately to my screen name or ping Neil E. Wright. We need professional writers to make our point. Thank you for any assistance.

I am so livid right now. I ran across this article this morning from a guy who thinks that troops and vets don't deserve the pay and benefits they get... http://www.michaelcrook.net/military-pay I come from a military family, so this guy better hope my boot doesn't meet his arse!

I hope this is ok to post here. I am trying to find some information for my husband on something we got when his father passed away a couple of years ago. It is clearly a blood chit from pictures I've seen online, but it doesn't really look just like the ones I can find online. It has only an American flag on it, with characters (beats me if they are Chinese or Korean, he flew over both during his career as a marine pilot). I would love to be able to translate it, as we plan to frame it...

OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea — The Air Force chaplain whose unflagging efforts saved nearly 1,000 orphans during the Korean War was memorialized Thursday in a ceremony at Gwangju. Col. Russell L. Blaisdell is credited with getting nearly 1,000 children out of Seoul at a time when a communist ground offensive was expected to soon overtake the city. The rescue became the much-publicized Operation Kiddy Car in late 1950. The ceremony in Gwangju city’s social welfare hall occurred exactly one year after Blaisdell died at 96. Among those attending were members of the South Korean national assembly; a representative of...

Last year 44 states, the District of Columbia and cities across the nation joined with the Silver Star Families of America to remember and honor our wounded and ill on May 1st. This year the organization is hoping all 50 states will join with them but they are taking a more grass root approach to this May 1st to kick off Military Appreciation Month.

Each time Noel Addy flew his World War II glider over Europe, commanders predicted he'd live only 18 more seconds. Towed behind a transport plane, Addy's armorless and gunless glider floated between German flak and machine-gun fire en route to landings behind enemy lines. On some missions, fewer than half of the gliders landed safely.

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel...

An announcement for the upcoming event honoring our veterans on Sunday, May 25, 2008 at the Veterans Memorial Museum, 2425 Fresno St., Fresno, CA, 3:00 pm. Entitled the "The Footsteps of our Fathers", this will be an exciting fund-raising event to recognize and honor our vets living in the Fresno/Clovis area, and will raise money for the renovation and upkeep as well as bringing attention to the Veterans Memorial Museum so people can continue to visit this "Best Kept Secret". There will be a BBQ, door prizes, tours, and special guest appearances. For information and tickets visit the website.

My wife knows, that as a nurse you can't get too emotionally involved when it comes to the people your caring for, but with this one she broke the rules. Mr. Sampson was her buddy. Mr. Sampson was the oldest living WW2 Marine in West TX. He was a Marine’s, Marine. A true hero! Richard Wood Sampson, known affectionately as “Serenity Sam,” to his AA friends and as Dick in the construction industry, went to the “Big Meeting” on Sunday, March 30, 2008. He was a carpenter and a veteran. He graduated from Clifton Forge High School in Clifton Forge,...

My Nephew has been missing in the Roseburg area since Monday morning his vehicle was found over a embakement in the Glide area. He was the owner of Gotta hava Java, in Roseburg. Any Freepers in that area that can help in anyway would be appreciated. The article is on line at News Review info.

As bullets clawed the air around us and screams echoed down the rubble-strewn tarmac, I felt almost peaceful. It was a simple mission, they had told me - get in, shake a few hands and mouth a few platitudes, get out. Simple. Yeah. Things had started going wrong while we were still in the air and only gotten worse from there. So here we were, pinned down, choking on the acrid tang of cordite and the heady scent of human blood. The mission was even simpler now: survive. Whatever the cost, survive. There was a grunt and a clatter of...

3/21/2008 - HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii (AFPN) -- After waiting for more than a year and a half from the christening of the seventh C-17 Globemaster III added to Hickam Air Force Base's fleet of eight, the men for whom it was named finally got their ride March 13 here. A group of 40 surviving veterans from the famed 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the 100th Infantry Battalion shuffled onboard to the "Spirit of Go For Broke" and took to the sky for a 45-minute tour around some of the Hawaiian Islands. Not only was the flight a historic...

HELP BUILD CT’S VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL Includes an all day picnic & blessing of the bikes SAVE THE DATE JOIN US FOR A FUNDRAISING PICNIC SATURDAY APRIL 5TH 2008 (rain date Sun 6th) TIME: 12:00 noon to 6:00 pm PLACE: DEVITT’S FIELD, DEEP RIVER, CT. 06417 Exit 5 off RT 9, FOLLOW SIGNS ALL PROCEEDS BENEFIT: CT VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL DONATION: ADULTS $20.00 Under 10 free w/paid adult CONTACT: JOE DIPIETRO 1-860-983-5021 or 526-1948 TO BECOME A SPONSOR WWW.CT612MEMORIAL.ORG Dedication May 17th 2008 in Coventry, CT

Aircraft number 61-2664 was built in 1961 at Boeing's sprawling Seattle works in Washington state. A variant of the commerical 707 airliner, the aircraft was first fitted out to perform the tasks of weather reconnaissance for Military Airlift Command. She performed these tasks for almost a decade. In 1972, WC-135 number 61-2664 was refitted to serve as a strategic reconnaissance platform. Dozens of other C-135s had been converted to comically long-nosed RC-135s over the decades, but 61-2664 was to join a specially small fraternity: Cobra Ball. Two RC-135 S-models were produced, both stationed at Eielson AFB, Alaska. Their highly...

I am SFC Robert Squirrel Sprouse son and trying to find any of his old buddies, or anyone that may had knew him.

Two California Highway Patrol Officers were conducting speeding enforcement on I-15, just north of the Marine Corps Air Station at Miramar . One of the officers was using a hand held radar device to check speeding vehicles approaching the crest of a hill. The officers were suddenly surprised when the radar gun began reading 300 miles per hour. The officer tempted to reset the radar gun, but it would not reset and then turned off. Just then a deafening roar over the tree tops revealed that the radar had in fact locked on to a USMC F/A-18 Hornet which was...

A pilots story about the SR-71 the Black Bird In April 1986, following an attack on American soldiers in a Berlin disco, President Reagan ordered the bombing of Muammar Qaddafi's terrorist camps in Libya. My duty was to fly over Libya and take photos recording the damage our F-111's had inflicted. Qaddafi had established a "line of death," a territorial marking across the Gulf of Sidra , swearing to shoot down any intruder that crossed the boundary. On the morning of April 15, I rocketed past the line at 2,125 mph. I was piloting the SR-71 spy plane, the world's...

Havildar Bhanbhagta Gurung, VC Gurkha who was decorated for his courage and skill in capturing a Japanese position in fierce hand-to-hand fighting Havildar Bhanbhagta Gurung, VC Bhanbhagta Gurung won his Victoria Cross in Burma in 1945. His action was the culmination of a series of extraordinarily gallant actions by this soldier of quite exceptional courage, yet it occurred while he was in disgrace, albeit unjustly. Born in the hill village of Phalbu in western Nepal, he was recruited into the old Indian Army soon after the outbreak of the Second World War, and joined 3rd Battalion 2nd King Edward VII’s...

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. Amen. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should...

Perhaps I am late to the party. Just got done reading this book. It struck home with me, since I used to be a tin can sailor myself. Before reading it, I never knew that the Yamato and Musashi could toss a 3,200 lb. shell a distance of 26 miles. That was the sort of thing we drilled for all the time. I'm glad that we never had to face it in battle. I was lucky enough to be in Clinton's Navy.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 21, 2008 – Before technology allowed U.S. aircraft to break the sound barrier, raw courage and bravery pushed the Tuskegee Airmen through the Army Air Corps color barrier. Retired Air Force Col. Charles E. McGee, a member of the all black 332nd Fighter Group, known as the Tuskegee Airmen, signs a copy of his biography during a Feb. 21, 2008, book signing at the Pentagon. Photo by John J. Kruzel  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Three intrepid airmen of the all-black 332nd Fighter Group appeared here today in the Pentagon concourse to sell and sign copies of...

2/13/2008 - MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AFPN) -- A retired general had been waiting on a call for some time; 55 years to be exact. Retired Lt. Gen. Charles G. Cleveland answered his home phone in January that turned out to be one of the most important calls of his life. "That's how I found out the Air Force was officially recognizing me as an ace," General Cleveland said. "Right there on the phone." But while the notification of his new-found status was brief and unceremonious, General Cleveland's journey to reach this point was a very long one. It started in South...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 12, 2008 – Since the birth of America, African-Americans have been fighting and dying alongside their countrymen as the United States has struggled for freedom and peace at home and abroad. African-American soldiers have fought in every war the United States has participated in, including the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Civil War, the Spanish American War, World Wars I and II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and the current war on terror. African-Americans, both free and slaves, participated in all the conflicts in the early days of America. About 5,000...

2/7/2008 - DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. -- Imagine being surrounded by enemy forces and having orders to retreat through a foreign land, fighting through the mountainous terrain in frigid temperatures for 78 miles, with little or no food, water and supplies. Many Korean War veterans experienced this and more in what has become known as the 'Forgotten War.' The 9th Annual Ruck March held at the Air Mobility Command Museum Feb. 2 here commemorated those veterans. Four-person ruck march teams, comprised of Air Force, Army, Marine and civilian competitors, walked or ran 6.2 miles to finish the race, each...

He's been dead over 5 years now.

I had the distinct pleasure and privilege this weekend to screen a true anomaly in the cinematic world: an unflinchingly patriotic movie, about the Vietnam War no less.Coming soon to DVD (and, quite possibly, a theatre near you), Jack Marino's Forgotten Heroes bucks the image of the Vietnam vet as the murderous and drug-addled scumbag portrayed far too often in films by axe-to-grinders like Oliver Stone and Brian DePalma.Forgotten Heroes could not hit the shelves and/or screen soon enough, either. Despite the abysmal failures of the recent anti-victory movies, Hollywood ...

At age 78, Bryan Moon has a single passion: Peace of mind for the relatives of soldiers who fought and died long ago. snip Seeking out remains of missing World War II pilots is a challenge, he says, because increasingly fewer of their peers are around to provide specific recollections of their whereabouts. "All the vets are 80 years or older; all the people who could be eyewitnesses are 80 or older," Moon says. "We have a very narrow period of time, or we'll lose all of them." He's been a pilot, an airline executive and an artist, but locating...

Hurdles Remain High for any Bump in Retiree TRICARE Fees The Defense Department's top health official believes that "within the next year or two" TRICARE fees, co-pays and deductibles will "begin to gradually go up" for military retirees. But Dr. S. Ward Casscells, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, also says he "has a lot of sympathy with" the argument of older retirees that they served during times when military pay was low and lifetime health care was promised if they served at least 20 years.

SIERRA VISTA — Four years before Pearl Harbor was attacked, a local man sailed on a U.S. Navy ship that was bombed and sunk by Imperial Japanese warplanes. The incident happened on Dec. 13, 1937, as the USS Panay was evacuating U.S. embassy personnel from Nanking, China’s capital of that era. It was a city under siege whose downfall became the infamous Rape of Nanking. The Panay was a gunboat that belonged to the U.S. Asiatic Fleet, whose 1930s peacetime mission included protection of American lives and property from pirates along the lawless Yangtze River, under a treaty with the...

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel...

BASTOGNE, Belgium, Dec. 21, 2007 – Standing next to the killing field where he once found himself face-down in the snow surrounded by the dead and dying, Ted Paluch said his return wasn’t as emotional as it once was, especially having visited three other times. Emotions begin to overcome Malmedy massacre survivor Ted Paluch after he presented a wreath to remember 84 U.S. soldiers executed in World War II. To Paluch’s right is Fabien Steffese, curator of the Baugneze 44 Historical Center, which recounts the tragedy. Photo by Ray Johnson  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. His resiliency and...

Check it out: http://navytv.org/media.cfm?c=169&m=411&s=52&

Sunday morning here in Sacramento was the 25th California International Marathon. I was standing out there in the freezing dawn with about 6000 of my closest friends waiting for the race to start. Everybody is nervous and in their own little world getting ready to run the 26.2 miles ahead. Just prior to the start, they announce the National Anthem and two little girls start to sing it. I "lock it up," remove my ski cap, and face the flag. I notice that almost no one else in the crowd is paying any attention! Out of the corner of my...

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel...

For dozens of soldiers who guarded Tucson during its frontier era, eternal rest has been anything but peaceful. Originally buried in a military cemetery Downtown, soldiers from the Civil War and ensuing conflicts with nearby Apache tribes were later exhumed and taken to the relocated Fort Lowell, which had moved from the city's center to the banks of the Rillito River. But the exhumation work, done by a doctor during the summer of 1884, was far from thorough. Remnants of the soldiers — along with a few full skeletons — left behind recently were discovered during archaeological work under way...

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel...

Sergeant First Class Arno J. Voigt was killed by friendly fire near Khe Sanh, Republic of Vietnam on June 4, 1970, and like all friendly fire accidents it was one of those things that shouldn’t have happened but did. A Pink Team consisting of an OH-6 Cayuse Light Observation Helicopter (Loach) and three AH-1G Cobra Gun Ships from the 2d Squadron 17th Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division mistook Arno Voigt and a company of ARVN Airborne Rangers for a company of NVA and fired on them, killing Arno Voigt along with two Rangers and wounding an additional twenty Rangers. This is...

Would anyone like a free dinner at Golden Corral? Well, there is an easy way if you are an American military veteran. Golden Corral just announced this year’s Military Appreciation Monday will be November 12, 2007, from 5 to 9 pm. For the past 6 years, Golden Corral has been honoring the US Military with a free “thank you” dinner and beverage at any Golden Corral restaurant on Military Appreciation Monday (first Monday after Veteran’s Day), to honor any person who has ever served in the United States Military. In the past the only requirement to receive the free meal...

While rummaging through a recycle shop here in Tokyo I came across this Navy Flight jacket. Lord knows how it managed to end up here, but it's obviously the real thing. I bought it with the idea of returning it to the original owner (or his family) if possible. I am currently unable to identify three of the patches, including the largest one on the back, so any information anyone can supply would be a help.

To be shown this Sunday, November 11, Veterans Day, a documentary of many Veterans homecomings. It will also be available in streaming video on the Smithsonian Channel, free.

Deep in the recesses of the National Archives in Washington, D.C., hidden for nearly four decades lie thousands of pages of yellowing and dusty documents stamped "Top Secret." These documents, now declassified, are the plans for Operation Downfall, the invasion of Japan during World War II. Only a few Americans in 1945 were aware of the elaborate plans that had been prepared for the Allied Invasion of the Japanese homeislands. Even fewer today are aware of the defenses the Japanese had prepared to counter the invasion had it been launched.

I used to be a tin can sailor. Great book. Like most books, it reinforces how the admirals were wrong. But that's easy to say 60 years after the fact. As Nelson DeMille said, anyone can be a military genius with the benefit of hindsight. I continue to be amazed that the Yamato and Musashi were able to shoot 3,200 lb. shells a distance of 26 miles. In my day, we did that with missiles.

Our Nephew Chris is going on his second tour to Iraq soon. There is a web site called Soldier Wall which honors service personnel. You can leave a comment to and about Chris, and thank him for his service.Soldier Wall

The first comprehensive review of veterans' disability benefits in 51 years recommends that Congress and the Bush administration support an immediate increase in compensation levels , of up to 25 percent for the most severely disabled, and to recognize their reduced quality of life.

Support for troops in Iraq. Please put the following on any mailing list send boxes in support of the troops in Iraq. Regimental Sergeant Major RCT2 Unit 73910 FPO AE 09509-3910 We really appreciate the support Semper Fidelis

US quits Sardinia nuclear submarine base leaving skeleton staff Sep 30 04:42 PM US/Eastern The US Navy has all but ended its presence at a nuclear submarine base in Sardinia with the departure of support vessel USS Emory Land with 1,500 sailors aboard, press reports said Sunday. Some 400 sailors will remain at La Maddalena naval base until the end of February, when it will be fully shut down after 35 years, to the relief of pacifists and environmentalists but to the chagrin of some of the 200 workers it employed. "We will miss you" read a banner as the...

CHALLENGING THE DVA AND THE IOM   This Summary is provided in advance of a more detailed report challenging the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Institute of Medicine. The premise is there is no coincidence that the legal arguments of the DVA in Haas vs. Nicholson (which are extremely weak) and the release of the Veterans and Agent Orange: Update 2006 (which excludes important data available to them) mutually support one another entirely. But that is the total means of their support. They are otherwise resting on air. The DVA legal argument is semantic manipulation that is meaningless...

8/22/2007 - RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) -- The scene in the rotunda of Randolph's Taj Mahal Aug. 21 probably seemed like too much hoopla to one former Army Air Corps staff sergeant. But all the TV cameras and reporters there to capture the moment, the remarks by an Air Force major general and the admiration shown by servicemembers and civilians alike more than fit the occasion -- a long-overdue ceremony to honor a true American hero. With one of his daughters at his side, Roy E. Talbott, 84, a self-effacing veteran who once served as a B-24 gunner...

8/21/2007 - PEASE AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, N.H. (AFPN) -- The 81-year-old World War II veteran was a liar. Robert McNally shared his story at the Pease Air National Guard Base's air show Aug. 19, one of the main attractions of Air Force Week New England. Mr. McNally's military journey preceded the Air Force and started in the era of the Army Air Corps. After hearing about the events of the attack at Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941, Mr. McNally was determined to do his part and serve his country. He had an obstacle in his way though; at 15...

As Sen. Barack Obama competes to be commander-in-chief, he might want to get a quick tutorial on military nomenclature. At the Iowa State Fair last week, he asked two soldiers in battle dress uniforms, or BDUs, who waited to greet him what their "squad" was. "What squad are you guys with?" was his exact question. The soldiers were respectful and answered the question Obama was trying to ask. You hear one of the soldier's say "We're with the 103rd out of Ft. Des Moines." What Obama should've asked the soldiers for was their "unit," not squad. A squad is among...