These are the real stories from Iraq

[1stdeadeye]

Speaking of heroes I got to meet one today. Huntsville, AL. resident Michael J. Durant was signing copies of his new book, 'In the Company of Heroes'. I had him sign a few copies for me and talked with him for a bit.

He is the pilot captured in Somalia played by Shep in Blackhawk Down right?

Thanks for the clean up too!

[Load SM5]

Yea, helluva nice guy too.

Here's the pic he's best known for.

[Beemer]

Got this in a E-Mail.......Sleep Last Night

SLEEP LAST NIGHT?
Bed a little Bumpy...
Toss and turn...

Wish the heat was a bit higher...

Maybe the AC wasn't on...

Had to go to the john...

Needed a drink of water...


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Scroll down













Yes....

It IS like that!
so........
Count your blessings, pray for them,
Talk to your Creator
and the next time when...
the other car cuts you off and you must hit the brakes,
or
you have to park a little further from Walmart than you want to be,
or
you're served slightly warm food at the restaurant,
or
you're sitting and cursing the traffic in front of you,
or
the shower runs out of hot water,

Think of them...
Protecting your freedom!


The proud warriors of Baker Company wanted to do something to pay tribute To our fallen comrades. So since we are part of the only Marine Infantry Battalion left in Iraq the one way that we could think of doing that is By taking a picture of Baker Company saying the way we feel. It would be awesome if you could find a way to share this with our fellow countrymen. I was wondering if there was any way to get this into your papers to let the world know that "WE HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN" and are proud to serve our country." Semper Fi
1stSgt Dave Jobe

The attached photo was forwarded from one of the last U.S. Marine companies in Iraq. They would like to have it passed to as many people as possible, to let the folks back home know that they remember why they're there and that they remember those who've been lost.

[Beemer]

only 147 views

http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?t=135676

Leaves ya speechless

[Beemer]

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE OF A DIGITAL CAMERA: SOLDIERS AS HEROS TO FREED IRAQIS
Mon May 10 2004 23:09:13 ET

Here's images you will not see in the NEW YORKER or on 60 MINUTES:

American soldiers welcomed as heros in Iraq!

As the world's satellites and printing presses await fresh images of troop horrors and abuse, soldiers on the ground e-mailed these snaps of warm greetings from some of Iraq's women and children.

[1stdeadeye]

The attached photo was forwarded from one of the last U.S. Marine companies in Iraq. They would like to have it passed to as many people as possible, to let the folks back home know that they remember why they're there and that they remember those who've been lost.

I love that Pic!

I am forwarding it out ASAP!!!

[Beemer]

[FactsOfLife]

Cpl Jason Dunham may be awarded the MOH for his actions in Iraq.

If anyone is deserving of this extraordinary commendation it is he.

Hoorah Dunham!

[Beemer]

Marine Cpl. Jason L. Dunham, 22, of Scio, N.Y.; assigned to 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, at Twentynine Palms, Calif.; killed in action April 22 in Anbar province, Iraq.

[-Carnifex-]

[Beemer]

Chicago Sun-Times, 09.20.04

http://www.suntimes.com/output/laney/cst-edt-laney20.html

Ranger's experience nothing like on TV

September 20, 2004

BY MARY LANEY




What was it like? Iraq looks a lot different than poolside behind a Winnetka home. It's worlds away from the mountains of Afghanistan. But Eric Leahy could tell me about what it was like in those faraway countries. Leahy's an Army Ranger from the 3rd Ranger Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment -- the first unit to parachute into Afghanistan and Iraq with just their wits and a hundred pounds of equipment on their backs. He has recently returned from four tours of duty: two in Afghanistan and two in Iraq.

He's visiting old high school friends and readjusting to life in mufti. That's how he came to be sitting -- in a T-shirt and jeans -- beside a friend's swimming pool in Winnetka, and how I came to be talking with him.

When I asked him what it had been like, he didn't talk about the heroics he and his fellow Rangers had been through, didn't brag about the medals he's won. He simply said, ''We're doing a lot of good.'' When I asked if he had been in firefights, he answered my naive question with a simple, ''I've been shot at.''

Leahy's only 23 but has a presence and maturity rare at his age. And his presence is daunting. He stands 6 feet tall with blond hair, blue eyes and a physique that one would call ''buff.'' He even appears to have muscles in his forehead. But it's his clarity and self-confidence that stand out. When he stands, he stands tall. When he walks, it's a walk of someone who now knows who he is.

''I was a 19-year-old kid with no direction. In basic training, I began to realize how hard these people work, how long and difficult this country's history has been. I had taken for granted all the freedoms I enjoyed and I felt proud to be a part of something so important and yet received so little recognition, at least before 9/11.''

It has been an adjustment for Leahy returning home, especially when he watches television news.

''What they're reporting has nothing in common with what I saw over there. Nothing. People back here think Iraqis and Afghanis are at war with Americans. It's just not true. The terrorists are killing Afghanis and Iraqis. For every American who's died, they've killed 25 of their own. They're killing their own people, not just American soldiers.

''When I was over there, not everybody liked us. But people would come up and offer us the food they had to feed their family for a week, or the water they had, and village elders would talk with us. But when you come back here, it's a whole different story.''

''Peter Jennings [of ABC News] was giving a live report in Baghdad when he noticed a Humvee stopped in traffic went over the curb and drove away. Jennings said the soldiers must think they're above the law. It wasn't that. The Humvee had no turret, no gun; it was getting out of a possibly bad situation.''

The young Ranger shakes his head at the reports just showing fighting instead of all the good over there: the schools built and open, the hospitals operating, the water that's now running, the electricity that's been repaired after years of neglect.

Leahy says he and his fellow Rangers had children coming up to them, laughing and thanking them.

''In Baghdad, they were all little entrepreneurs selling cigarettes and DVDs.''

He says he felt good when he saw young women able to walk outside, but sad to see them hunched over after years of having to carry heavy loads and stay indoors.

There were tense times as well -- times when senses must be acute.

''One Holy Night, the Iraqis were cooking in the streets, local militia were on corners with AK-47's for miles. We didn't know if we could trust them or not as we drove through. We were turning a corner. I was watching, my weapon ready. All of a sudden an AK went off. I saw it was an accident. The man's weapon was pointed at the ground and went off. We drove on.''

I asked him how he deals with such sharpened senses since he returned home. His answer spoke volumes.

''My first week home, I was at a friend's wedding in California and still in the mind-set of paranoia, looking around a lot. I was out on the balcony overlooking an intersection and a stoplight.

"Cars were actually stopping at the light, no shots fired, no car bombs exploding, no one dragged from a car and burned by terrorists, no one fearful for their life. It made me feel good. It helped give reason for what I've done. To come back and watch a simple stoplight and see people here have lives where they don't have to fear that kind of thing. I don't think people realize just how lucky they are to live here.''

Perhaps not.

Leahy plans to enroll in college now. Once there, here's hoping he'll tell them -- tell them how lucky we all are.

Thank you, Eric Leahy, and welcome home.

[FactsOfLife]

The following is a letter written by Marine Sergeant Josh Mandel, who served with the 1st LAR in Iraq, to his parents on the eve of his return from the Middle East.


Dear Mom and Dad,
I've been looking forward to the day when I could tell you that this is the last letter I'll be writing you from Iraq. Well, this is the last letter I'll be writing you from Iraq!!! Ahhhhhhh...that felt good.

I hope all's well at home and by the time this arrives you'll be packing up for, or en route to, Camp Pendleton. I can't wait to see you and hug and hug and hug you and then get some real food! It's been an eye-opening seven months and a time in my life that will undoubtedly affect who I am the rest of my life. Someone who wrote me put it well by saying, "The person you become will always be shaped by your experience now." He was a Marine in Vietnam and his words have stuck in my head.

Iraq has changed the way I see the world and painted a clearer picture of how the world sees me as an American. Even though I didn't think it was possible, my love for our country and pride to wear this uniform is even greater today than it was when we boarded those birds seven months ago yesterday. Serving here, under the same flag that Papa Harold fought for and that Papa Joe yearned for, has been an incredible honor and privilege. I'm not sure when this fight will be over, but I am sure that it's just and for a good cause. As I wrote you earlier, I hope the American people will be able to stomach the sacrifice required to accomplish this complicated mission of destroying terrorism and developing democracy. Both of those tasks will take time, but I remain confident that at the end of the day, America will once again succeed. Living out here hasn't bee the epitome of pleasantness (understatement), but it's all been made easier to endure by the incredible and very generous support from home. Along those lines and on behalf of my entire Platoon, I'd appreciate you telling our family and friends how much their love, words, and goodies have impacted us.

I've tried my best to thank people who've supported us in so many different ways. Given our limited free time, I haven't been able to respond to much of the mail that's come in. However, I want everyone to know that whatever they sent, be it a postcard with a New York hot dog vendor on the front (Mara Leventhal) or a bottomless box of spirit boosters, they contributed to our mission and morale in a very important way. This past week the battalion chaplain gave us a talk called the "warrior transition brief." It was about adjusting back to life in the states and all the things that come along with interacting with civilians, vs. Marines 24/7. As you might imagine, many of the Devil Dogs in the audience were rolling eyes, but it actually gave me a good feeling that he was giving this brief.

I don't foresee myself having any trouble adjusting back, but who knows? Some of my fellow Marines who are not too far out of high school have been pretty shaken up out here, and it's good to know that the Corps is being proactive about keeping them from whacking out when we reach the land of fast cars, alcohol, girlfriends, family, and most of all, freedom.

But just to give you a heads up, if I tell you I have to make a head call and you see me going out to the back yard with a shovel, you have my permission to smack me around. Or if we sit down for a nice meal and I'm done with dessert before the rest of the table has finished their soup, you have my permission to give me a sharp under-the-table kick (to the shin, not groin). Or if we're driving down the street and I stop the car to inspect every garbage bag on a tree lawn, you have my permission to place me in the trunk. Well, you get the picture. But don't worry, I'm coming back just fine upstairs (or as my beloved Corps calls it, my "brain housing group").

A while back I wrote you about one of my fellow Marines who played us a recording of his baby's heartbeat sent from his pregnant wife. That Marine is about to become a dad any day now and we're all pretty excited for him. In a way, it's situations like that that remind us who and what we're fighting for.

My who and what is made up of many memories of home and many hopes for America. Within that is you and the way in which you've always been there for me as parents. You've taught me to treat people with kindness and respect and have instilled me with an appreciation and love for family. You raised me to want to serve my country and for that I'll always be grateful.

I have to end this letter now, so farewell from the other side of the globe. Please travel safe out to California and tell Rachel the same coming from Chicago. I love you and miss you and can't wait to see you. Signing off from the big sandbox and looking forward to the big reunion at Camp Pendleton.

Your loving son,

Josh

HOORAH!

[Load SM5]

Upping this with something I heard on the radio today, about little Iraq girl who is a hero.

December 16, 2004
The Heart of America
Via Seamus, this email is a thank you from a Marine Gunnery Sergeant in Iraq. It was sent two days ago:

Just wanted to write to you and tell you another story about an experience we had over here.
As you know, I asked for toys for the Iraqi children over here and several people (Americans that support us) sent them over by the box. On each patrol we take through the city, we take as many toys as will fit in our pockets and hand them out as we can. The kids take the toys and run to show them off as if they were worth a million bucks. We are as friendly as we can be to everyone we see, but especially so with the kids. Most of them don't have any idea what is going on and are completely innocent in all of this.
On one such patrol, our lead security vehicle stopped in the middle of the street. This is not normal and is very unsafe, so the following vehicles began to inquire over the radio. The lead vehicle reported a little girl sitting in the road and said she just would not budge. The command vehicle told the lead to simply go around her and to be kind as they did. The street was wide enough to allow this maneuver and so they waved to her as they drove around.
As the vehicles went around her, I soon saw her sitting there and in her arms she was clutching a little bear that we had handed her a few patrols back. Feeling an immediate connection to the girl, I radioed that we were going to stop. The rest of the convoy paused and I got out the make sure she was OK. The little girl looked scared and concerned, but there was a warmth in her eyes toward me. As I knelt down to talk to her, she moved over and pointed to a mine in the road.
Immediately a cordon was set as the Marine convoy assumed a defensive posture around the site. The mine was destroyed in place.
It was the heart of an American that sent that toy. It was the heart of an American that gave that toy to that little girl. It was the heart of an American that protected that convoy from that mine. Sure, she was a little Iraqi girl and she had no knowledge of purple mountain's majesty or fruited plains. It was a heart of acceptance, of tolerance, of peace and grace, even through the inconveniences of conflict that saved that convoy from hitting that mine. Those attributes are what keep Americans hearts beating. She may have no affiliation at all with the United States, but she knows what it is to be brave and if we can continue to support her and her new government, she will know what it is to be free. Isn't that what Americans are, the free and the brave?
If you sent over a toy or a Marine (US Service member) you took part in this. You are a reason that Iraq has to believe in a better future. Thank you so much for supporting us and for supporting our cause over here.
Semper Fi,
Mark
GySgt / USMC

[-Carnifex-]

I like how one-sided these are.

[drg]

This picture of the statue was made by an Iraqi artist named Kalat, who for years was forced by Saddam Hussein to make the many hundreds of bronze busts of Saddam that dotted Baghdad. This artist was so grateful that the Americans liberated his country, he melted 3 of the fallen Saddam heads and made a memorial statue dedicated to the American soldiers and their fallen comrades. Kalat worked on this night and day for several months. To the left of the kneeling soldier is a small Iraqi girl giving the soldier comfort as he mourns the loss of his comrade in arms. It is currently on display outside the palace that is now home to the 4th Infantry division. It will eventually be shipped and shown at the memorial museum in Fort Hood, Texas.

According to the Army News Service (ARNEWS), the text reproduced above is a relatively accurate description of the statue shown in the photograph accompanying it.

It's actually quite inaccurate in some very important areas: http://www.snopes.com/photos/military/kalat.asp

I know it's going to be unpopular to bring that up here, but the truth should never be run roughshod over. If nothing else it's food for thought. Always think critically. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.