Monday, December 10, 2007

John McCain For President

This election will be the most important one of our generation. John McCain is an American hero who will always make decisions based on what is best for our great nation.



Monday, October 22, 2007

Red Sox in the World Series!!!!




Woo Hoo! This is wonderful! Wow - what a tough series. Gotta hand it to Cleveland. Bring on the Rockies!

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Well Behaved Women Quote, Wyoming

No one has ever accused me of being well behaved! :) One of my friends posted this to Flickr. Love it!

Friday, October 12, 2007

Iwo Jima - Legos


Sept 2007 039, originally uploaded by reenie61b.

This is in the gift shop of the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, VA. Check out my flickr feed for more pics of the Marine Corps Museum!

Thursday, September 27, 2007

Maastricht, Netherlands


Maastricht, Netherlands, originally uploaded by reenie61b.

This is the beautiful city of Maastricht taken from my hotel window. Very lovely! And much fun too.

Thursday, September 13, 2007

My buddy Nancy is back in Iraq again. Here is her story about a close call on Camp Victory. For all those who think if we walk away from Iraq that everything will be all sunshine and roses - please think again and ... don't endanger my life with your stupidity.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

The Revolt of the Generals

San Diego Union-TribuneSeptember 12, 2007

The Revolt Of The Generals

By Georgie Anne Geyer
This is the week of the generals. “Oh,” you say, “you mean the generals who have been serving in Iraq and are now testifying before Congress about our troops staying there?” Nope, sorry, friend. I mean the growing “revolt of the generals,” as some are calling it, AGAINST the war and against the entire war policy.
They are, of course, almost all retired generals. Anthony Zinni, Barry McCaffrey, Wesley Clark, Paul Eaton, James Jones, John Batiste and others, in addition to some influential colonels such as Ralph Peters. One might stop to wonder why those generals and other officers still in service when the war began didn't speak out a little earlier (as some of these did), when it might have done some good and spared us what many knew even then was going to go down as the greatest military disaster in American history.
Those who did speak out and continue to do so are brave men, with more important messages for Americans today than any that were likely to go from Iraqi commanding Gen. David H. Petraeus to the Congress this week.
From retired Col. Ralph Peters, writing in USA Today: “The generals point out that they don't control the strategic decisions, that all they can do is to follow orders, that then-Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld wouldn't listen to anyone, that Congress undercut the military, that the media's behavior has been pernicious and that Iraq's political leaders have failed their country.”
“No matter the mitigating circumstances and political restrictions military leaders face, there is no 'gentleman's C' in warfare. The course is pass-fail.”
From retired Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey, testifying before the House Armed Services Committee on July 31: “The U.S. armed forces are in a position of strategic peril. Congress must act.”
“However, the purpose of my testimony is not to talk about the ongoing tactical operations ... but instead the disastrous state of America's ground combat forces. Congress has been missing-in-action during the past several years while undebated and misguided strategies were implemented by former Secretary Rumsfeld and his team of arrogant and inexperienced civilian associates in the Pentagon. The JCS (Joint Chiefs of Staff) failed to protect the armed forces from bad judgment and illegal orders.
“They have gotten us in a terrible strategic position of vulnerability. The Army is starting to crack under the strain of lack of resources, lack of political support and leadership from both the administration and this Congress, and isolation from the American people who have now walked away from the war.”
Finally, retired Marine Gen. Anthony Zinni, speaking on his recent book, “The Battle for Peace,” in a recent “Meet the Press” appearance, describes the administration's behavior in the war as ranging from “true dereliction, negligence and irresponsibility” to “lying, incompetence and corruption.”
In short: (1) Our military officer corps has become so bureaucratized, and thus is easily cowed by an obnoxiously dominating and humiliating figure like former Secretary Rumsfeld, that we can never expect independent thinking from them if it is going to cost them their pensions. (2) The mindset of American officers is so rigidly conventional that they are simply incapable of understanding the Third World mentalities that they blithely – and ignorantly – fight. (3) Our military officers can understand only conventional warfare – tank battles across the belly of Europe – even though that threat barely exists in today's world.
Think about it. Every war we have fought (and too many of them!) since World War II has involved an “irregular” or guerrilla opponent. Especially Vietnam. Yet our military discovered “counterinsurgency” only three years into the Iraq war. The rather obvious thing to learn from this is, if you cannot do something well or at least understand it, then don't do it! That lesson most definitely has not been learned at the Pentagon, at enormous cost to America.
Worse, the true military heroes who have emerged from Iraq – moral heroes for telling the truth – have not been respected by this military, and have largely been pushed aside. One need only think of Army Maj. Gen. Antonio M. Taguba, who was tapped from within the military to investigate the Abu Ghraib torture revelations. When he found that senior officers should be held responsible, he was ostracized – and no officers have received more than a slap on the wrist.
It is surely good that these retired generals (and a few others) have been speaking out, but where does it go? Even today, after Vietnam and Somalia and Bosnia and Lebanon and Central America, there is no one in the Pentagon who can analyze histories of foreign cultures well enough to predict what a society would do in response to an occupation. Our officers are treating counterinsurgency like something brand new when in fact it is millennia old.
We will have to watch carefully what happens to the officer corps after Iraq, whenever that might be. And we will have to thank these generals for the clarity that they are bringing to this clouded picture.

Friday, August 3, 2007

Check Out the Multiple Shell Casings


iraq, originally uploaded by soldiersmediacenter.

Friday, June 8, 2007

afghanistan


afghanistan, originally uploaded by soldiersmediacenter.

This is a really great shot!

Monday, June 4, 2007

Iraq


Iraq, originally uploaded by soldiersmediacenter.

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

I Would Be Very Hard Pressed

As a retired military officer to refuse a request from my Commander in Chief, regardless of my personal feelings, to use my skills in the defense of our great Nation. The behavior of some of our most senior, I find particularly vexing. We must win this fight. Iraq is only one battlefield.

Sunday, May 6, 2007

Anna and Maureen After 39.2 Miles!!

We made it! More later :)

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

Soldiers


iraq, originally uploaded by soldiersmediacenter.

One Choice In Iraq

Please read this opinion from Senator Joe Lieberman. It is one of the most well reasoned arguments for deciding against losing the war. So what if we pull out of Iraq? Unfortunately, Iraq is merely the current battlefield in the war against Islamic fascism. Do people really think that if we pulled out that the enemy would be thankful that they could go home to their lovely lives??? They hate us and our way of life and our freedom. They won't be happy until they make the whole world into a caliphate.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

On Being Home

Please read this post by a Marine who recently returned from Iraq. It is unbelievably moving and sad. We'll be paying this debt to our brave servicemen and -women for years.

Saturday, April 7, 2007

Americans Want to Help!


When I first returned from Iraq I was often angry at the perception I had that Americans didn't care at all about the sacrifices that are being made on their behalf every day. These sacrifices are being made by troops stationed all around the world, of course most notably in Iraq and Afghanistan. I have since come to realize that there are a lot of American who do care, who would like to do something short of picking up a rifle, but a lot more than "going shopping" to defeat the terrorists. All of these good people and their potential efforts are largely going untapped and being ignored because there has been silence from our nation's leaders as to how the average American can help. I believe there are simple things that can be done and recommended that would change the public's perception and would galvanize our great nation to face the fight we have ahead of us. Let's start with the government selling War Bonds - they were wildly successful during WWII. Maybe we don't need Victory Gardens or Aluminum Drives, but however much they were needed during the war, they certainly galvanized the nation into a common sacrifice and made people feel patriotic in simple and discrete ways. People will continue to sit on their couches watching American Idol unless our leaders give them some ideas of how to really help.

Friday, April 6, 2007

The Pivotal Moment - 2004


This was the pivotal steal - Dave Roberts will always be a Boston icon! This will be a fun season - Go Sox!

Monday, April 2, 2007

Florida 2007 Michaela and Me


Florida 2007 Michaela and Me, originally uploaded by reenie61b.

I think this is my favorite picture of me and my daughter. We had so much fun on vacation. I can't wait until our next one!

Saturday, March 31, 2007

Love this Soldier Pic


iraq, originally uploaded by soldiersmediacenter.

Friday, March 23, 2007

Great Soldier Pic


iraq, originally uploaded by soldiersmediacenter.

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Big Papi Gets It!! Thanks!


Check out this story that started in the NH Union Leader and made it to the Washington Post! I love you Big Papi!

Monday, March 12, 2007

Fun at Winter AUSA


Florida 2007 Feb 177, originally uploaded by reenie61b.

Everyone worked so hard at this year's AUSA. It was nice to have a little fun at the end! :) Thanks!

Monday, February 12, 2007

The Battle Scars Of A Private War

Los Angeles Times
February 12, 2007
Pg. 1

The Battle Scars Of A Private War

Contractors wounded or killed in Iraq are the anonymous casualties. Ceremonies are secret, and benefits are scarce.

By T. Christian Miller, Times Staff Writer

HOUSTON — On a cold, overcast day here Friday, nine families came together in a hushed hotel ballroom to receive one of the nation's most prestigious civilian honors.

Executives in dark blue suits shifted uncomfortably as an Army major general in battle fatigues awarded posthumous Defense of Freedom medals to the families' loved ones, all contractors killed while working in Iraq.

But this was no public recognition of sacrifice. The event was held in secret, with guards to keep out the media. The Army even refused to release the names of those it was honoring. The nation's gratitude was delivered behind closed doors.

A thousand miles to the north, a day later, a group of contractors got together on their own dime in a gritty cinder-block VFW hall beside a freeway in Knoxville, Tenn.

This time, there were neither medals nor executives. Instead, there were sudsy beers, loud music and the camaraderie of men and women who swapped war stories of public indifference, bureaucratic ineptitude and corporate incompetence.

"This is what we've got. This is our party," said Jana Crowder, the wife of a contractor. She organized the conference, which drew a few dozen people, from as far as South Dakota and Maine.

The contrasting events signal the issues that surround a new and largely invisible kind of pseudo-veteran: the thousands of contractors who have been injured, some fatally, working in Iraq for the U.S. government.

Nearly 125,000 contractors are now at work in Iraq supporting roughly 135,000 troops, according to the most recent military figures. The ratio is far higher than for any previous U.S. conflict, military analysts say.

More than 750 contractors have been killed in Iraq, according to Department of Labor statistics, and almost 8,000 injured. The figures include Americans, Iraqis and other nationalities employed under U.S. government contracts.

Contractors' surviving relatives and wounded contractors have many of the same problems as military members and their families, including searing grief, difficult recoveries and unanswered questions.

But the contractors' status as private employees on a public mission has created an uncertain future, where surviving a bullet in the head does not mean a lifetime of care and where a local bar becomes the closest thing to a veteran's hospital.

All contractors working overseas are supposed to be covered by federal workers' compensation. Under the system, contracting companies purchase insurance to cover workers' injuries, lost wages and, in the case of death, benefits to survivors.

Though the system has worked smoothly in some cases, many contractors have found themselves fighting for medical care and psychological counseling in a civilian healthcare system. Contractors with head wounds and fist-sized holes in their sides have had to fly back to the U.S. on commercial jets for medical care.

For support, they have only a homemade system of sympathy, patched together through websites and e-mail.

Many of the injured are blue-collar Americans, cops and truckers and oil rig hands who saw Iraq as a way to make some money and support the war. They are scattered across the U.S., isolated from those who suffered similar experiences.

Few contractors expect to be treated like returning soldiers. They are quick to acknowledge that they were paid better and could quit when they wanted.

But many served side by side with American troops, lived in the same harsh conditions, and braved mortar fire and roadside bombs without the protection of armored vehicles or weapons. They are frustrated at the difficulty they have encountered in getting help for their troubles.

Some contractors have seen their efforts in Iraq dismissed by friends and neighbors as the product of greed.

"There's no support," said Art Faust, 56, a former trucker for KBR, a Halliburton subsidiary now being spun off into a separate company. Faust, of Porter, Texas, has been trying to get psychological treatment after being caught in an ambush in which three other truckers and a soldier were killed. "It's just like someone hit the delete button."

The Houston medal ceremony, jointly sponsored by KBR and the Department of Defense, underscored the meshing of the American military with contractors. KBR holds the single largest contract in Iraq, with 50,000 workers supplying food, fuel and mail to the military. The contractors work alongside soldiers, helping rebuild the country and providing private security guards to diplomats and senior U.S. officials.

All told, the Pentagon has awarded 119 contractors the Defense of Freedom medal, which is considered the civilian equivalent of a Purple Heart. Of those, 95 have gone to KBR employees, according to KBR officials.

The officials declined to provide names or access to the event, citing privacy concerns. The Times was given access by family members who received the award.

Bruce A. Stanski, a KBR executive vice president, told the families that the KBR workers were "true heroes." "We at KBR will never forget those who lost their lives carrying out their critical work. They work side by side with our soldiers, providing them with the bare necessities and the comforts of home."

Maj. Gen. Jerome Johnson, head of the Army's Sustainment Command, which oversees the KBR contract, spoke for nearly half an hour before presenting the families with the medal, created after the Sept. 11 attacks to honor civilians working for the Defense Department.

Johnson, who strode across a low riser decorated with U.S. and KBR flags, compared the KBR workers to soldiers and said their work was vital to the U.S. cause in Iraq. Meanwhile, Ray Charles' "America the Beautiful" played.

"Some of your loved ones may not have been wearing a uniform, at least not now, but they were American soldiers," he said, alluding to the many contractors in Iraq who are military veterans.

Afterward, several families said they appreciated the effort by KBR and the military to recognize their loved ones. But they expressed dismay at the lack of communication over the circumstances of the deaths. For many families, the only explanations came from news accounts and recollections of fellow drivers.

Lloyd Dagit's son Keven was killed in the ambush that trapped Faust in September 2005. "KBR has never come and said, 'Here's what happened,' " Dagit said. He continued: "They may say he was part of their family. That means we're part of their family."

Most of the people who gathered the following day in Knoxville were also truckers who had worked for KBR. In the dim light of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1733, they commiserated around low, round tables. Faded red, white and blue streamers hung from the ceiling. Gray-haired Vietnam veterans drank at the bar. A local band blasted Stevie Wonder's "Superstition."

Unable to access local veterans' hospitals, some of the men took a class in post-traumatic stress in a small room beside the bar. Several had been diagnosed with the disorder but had been unable to get steady treatment.

Driver Robert Rowe, 46, of Ohio, was shot in the knee in August 2004 while hauling ice for KBR in a convoy near Baghdad. Army medics treated him, and he flew home with his knee oozing blood under thick bandages.

He is still battling KBR's insurer, American International Group Inc., to get workers' compensation. He lives out of his truck and friends' homes, unable to afford his old apartment.

AIG did not respond to a request for comment Sunday, but it has maintained that 90% of claims by Iraq contractors have been paid without dispute.

"I look at that flag now, and I say, 'What the hell does that represent anymore?' " said Rowe, who served in the military before going to Iraq for KBR.

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Sadness!

I am very sad about My Beloved Patriots losing to the Colts. I am not thrilled with Payton Manning and his ever present mug all over every commercial, but I discovered something when I was watching them play the Ravens - I like the Colts better than I like the Ravens. I can stand watching Mr. Clean Cut Manning MUCH better than looking at Mr. Murderer Ray Lewis. So - Okay - Go Colts!

Monday, January 15, 2007

My Beloved Patriots


I am still hoarse from yelling and jumping and yelling and biting my nails and ... I am so energized about the Patriots moving on in the playoffs! In Tom We Trust! How about this commercial from Troy Brown?

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Avon Walk for Breast Cancer

On May 5 - 6, 2007, I'll spend the weekend walking, along with thousands of other people, in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. I will walk at least the distance of a marathon (26.2 miles), and I may choose to walk as far as a marathon and a half. I will also raise at least $1,800 in donations to the cause. I'll have to spend the next few months training, fundraising, and preparing for the event. It's one of the biggest challenges I've ever taken on, but I'm very excited about doing it because I know it will make a real difference to the millions of people affected by breast cancer.

The money raised is managed and disbursed by the Avon Foundation, a 501(c)(3) public charity with a mission is to fund access to care and finding a cure for breast cancer. The Avon Foundation funds both local and national organizations in five key areas: medical research’, education and early detection programs; clinical care; and support services, all with a focus on the medically underserved.

Monday, January 8, 2007

Rough Winter In Kabul


Winter in Kabul - Who knew this were the conditions that Afghans and our Soldiers are operating in? I haven't seen anything on TV about this. In New England we are enjoying a very mild winter - Let's not forget our Soldiers.
Thanks to Capt Doug Traversa for this photo from his blog post.

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