A knife-wielding carjacker got more than he bargained for when he attempted to steal an elderly couple's car at a Michigan petrol station and was fought off by a Korean War veteran.
Barney Trusewicz, 81, was inside the service station telling the attendant to turn on the fuel pump when he saw a man covered in tattoos get in his car and sit next to his wife.
Constance Trusewicz, 79, said Christopher Bowens sat in the car next to her and told her to get out because he was going to take it.
Christopher Bowens sat in the car next to Constance Trusewicz and told her to get out because he was going to take it
'And I said, 'What?' Ms Trusewicz said.
'And then I looked and I saw all these tattoos and I thought, oh crap.'
Mr Trusewicz then raced over to the car as fast as he could and reached in and turned off the engine twice as Bowens tried to restart the vehicle.
That's when he noticed a large butcher's knife in Bowens hand which he grabbed onto and refused to let go of, fearing he would stab at him or his wife.
'I was just waiting for him (Barney) to thrust it into his stomach, but it didn't happen,' Ms Trusewicz said.
The pair wrestled briefly until Bowens gave up and fled.
'He said, 'I'm going, I'm getting out of here.' I said, OK. I just didn't want him to come and give me a parting shot,' Mr Trusewicz said.
Police said that Bowens was lucky to escape without being injured.
Bowens was apprehended not far from the petrol station.
Bowens, who was on parole and probation when he committed the alleged crime, has been remanded in Wayne County Jail and faces a possible life sentence for federal and state crimes.
Ironically, police prosecutor Sergeant Joseph Lavis said Bowen had targeted the couple because they were elderly and he thought they would be an easy target.
'He felt that they would offer little or no resistance,' Sergeant Lavis said.
Where is STORMBRINGER???
Still lurking the Halls of Power, and now the Ivory-Towered Corridors of Academia . . . it was DC earlier in the week . . . Hartford Connecticut this weekend, next week Cambridge Massachusetts to haunt the alma mater of Klick & Klack the Tappett Brothers . . . . they've got some interesting architecture around here . . . like they can't make up their minds if its a castle or a cathedral . . . conversations like "I once saw in a survey somewhere" . . . things will get back to normal next week . . . STORMBRINGER SENDS
I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Theo Spark of Last of the Few - a true British patriot, a great representative of everything that is good & great of Britain and the Commonwealth, and a true friend and supporter of America - Theo helped kickstart STORMBRINGER in the Blogosphere. Best wishes to our British & Commonwealth friends and allies during the 60th year of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's reign. This is the thirtieth anniversary of the Falklands War; some time today take a moment to reflect on the 907 Argentine and British warriors who perished in this totally unnecessary and tragic conflict.- S.L.
LOD's newest Patriot Profile trailer “Choosing Honor” just went live on the LOD network. Sergeant Ed Eaton is a Vietnam war veteran who single-handedly fought off two groups of Viet Kong after getting shot down during a helicopter night mission in 1969 – and act that saved his own life and the life of his comrade Major Mike Perkins.
Like I said yesterday I'll be on the road the upcoming weeks - blogging will be light - I support NRA's L.O.D. because what they do is a perfect extension of Blog STORMBRINGER primary mission: "Honor"
This one has been making the rounds for a few years now over the email machine - no I didn't Snopes it, I like it enought that if it ain't true, it ought to be - and now seems a particularly appropriate time to present Florida concealed carry material - S.L.
Retired Marine and former Pan Am/Delta Pilot John Lovell is Top Gun at Subway Sandwich Shop
Plantation, Florida:
Last week police were called to investigate an attempted armed robbery: The 71-year-old retired Marine who opened fire on two robbers at a Plantation, Florida, Subway shop late Wednesday, killing one and critically wounding the other, is described as John Lovell, a former helicopter pilot for two presidents. He doesn't drink, he doesn't smoke, and he works out every day. Mr. Lovell was a man of action Wednesday night.
According to Plantation police, two masked gunmen came into the Subway at 1949 N. Pine Rd. just after 11 p.m. There was a lone diner, Mr. Lovell, who was finishing his meal. After robbing the cashier, the two men attempted to shove Mr. Lovell into a bathroom and rob him as well. They got his money, but then Mr. Lovell pulled his handgun and opened fire. He shot one of the thieves in the head and chest and the other in the head.
When police arrived, they found one of the men in the shop, K-9 Units found the other in the bushes of a nearby business. They also found cash strewn around the front of the sandwich shop according to Detective Robert Rettig of the Plantation Police Department.
Both men were taken to the Broward General Medical Center, where one, Donicio Arrindell, 22, of North Lauderdale died. The other, 21-year-old Frederick Gadson of Fort Lauderdale is in critical but stable condition.
Mr. Lovell was a pilot in the Marine Corps, flying former Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. He later worked as a pilot for Pan Am and Delta Airlines.
He is not expected to be charged authorities said. "He was in fear for his life," Detective Rettig said, "These criminals ought to realize that most men in their 70's have military backgrounds and aren't intimidated by idiots."
Something tells me this old Marine wasn't 'in fear for his life', even though his life was definitely at risk. The only thing he could be charged with is participating in an unfair fight. One 71- year young Marine against two punks. Two head shots and one center body mass shot.
Outstanding shooting! That'll teach them not to get between a Marine and his meal. Old people don't fight, they just shoot you.
Florida law allows eligible citizens to carry a concealed weapon. Don't you just love a story with a happy ending?
The U.S. embassy complex in the Green Zone in Baghdad comprises 21 buildings on a 104 acres site, it is the largest U.S. embassy in the world.
The embassy compound includes:
Six apartment buildings
Water and waste treatment facilities
A power station
Two "major diplomatic office buildings"
A gym, several tennis courts and an Olympic-size swimming pool
The entire complex is heavily fortified with deep security perimeters, reinforced construction, and five highly guarded entrances.
After the pullout of US troops from Iraq on 18 December 2011, the bulk of security manpower for Department of State operations throughout Iraq fell to an army of private contractors. Configured roughly into 50-70 man elements nominally led by "security managers" whose job description mirrors that of a Special Forces Company Sergeant Major, the Department of State Security (DSS) operation represents an estimated 5,000-manpower requirement. This was viewed as job security for people in my line of work.
This past February I visited the northern Virginia headquarters of one of the companies that provides this contract manpower - this organization shall remain unnamed for the purposes of this article, although their presence in Iraq and elsewhere is not secret. That day I became aware of a new development in the Iraqi saga; security personnel scheduled to work the DSS contract in Iraq could not get visas to enter the country. Worse; those already in-country who had departed for R&R or medical reasons, could not get visas to return. For whatever reason the Iraqis are sitting on the visa process.
This past week I spoke with an old friend - like me, Mike Golf (a pseudonym) is an immigrant to this country and a Special Forces veteran. Mike had been working as a civilian contractor in Coronado, training SEALs. The company that had that contract - NEK - lost out to a new outfit on the block - Oak Grove Technologies - in October 2011, and for the first time in his life Mike was unemployed. The problem is the overseas work is drying up, and contractors are scrambling for whatever positions are available here Stateside.
I shared my observations with another Special Forces colleague - Juan Casantigua (not his real name) worked in Iraq and Jordan as a private businessman before the Iraq invasion of April 2003. Juan left the region only to serve on the Karzai detail in Afghanistan, before returning to Iraq where he served as a "strategic asset" providing ground truth and security services to the State Department and to US forces throughout the years of heaviest combat operations.
Juan commented that the Iraqis see the big money that accompanied the U.S. military presence was drying up, and their sitting on the visas is their way of saying they don't need us anymore - the old "Yankee go home." Juan remarked that the Iraqis will sort things out, and that they probably could have sorted things out a whole lot earlier without the instability created by the tons of money we poured in there.
Ruins of the crusader castle at Kerak, overlooking the Kings Highway south of Amman, Jordan.
The comparison refers to the historical Crusader experience in the Holy Land, where Christian forces eventually withdrew to castle strongholds, from which they could only emerge in heavily armed columns. Likewise in Afghanistan; NATO forces are tied down to heavily fortified perimeters. Within these perimeters, little outposts of Western civilization exist to include American fast food franchises and all the comforts found on bases worldwide.
The US experience in Afghanistan began as a decisive military campaign which featured spectular missions executed by elite Special Operations forces operating in small teams. At some point the mission to wipe out al Qaeda and their Taliban hosts morphed into "nationbuilding". We have long since ceased to manoever on the enemy.
What goes down in Vegas, stays in Vegas.
Since the recent events - the Koran burning event and the mass murder war crime by an American soldier - NATO forces cannot venture into the countryside, towns and villages without significant force. Efforts to "win the hearts and minds" of the population have gone from challenging and difficult to impossible; this begs the question - for what reason are we there?
The enemy has harnessed the sentiments of the local population, and in doing so has effectivly tied us down. It is time for us to depart, and to seek other battlefields to engage the terrorist enemy. There is no shortage of venues.
- STORMBRINGER SENDS
I will be on the road for the next week and a half - posts will be sporadic - S.L.
The United States has had traitors in every war we've been in - this war is no different - S.L.
American terrorist SSG Robert Bales charged with 17 counts of murder in Afghanistan massacre
Army Staff Sgt. Robert Bales was charged Friday with 17 counts of murder and six counts of attempted murder, along with other charges, in connection with a shooting rampage in two southern Afghanistan villages that shocked Americans back home and further roiled U.S.-Afghan relations.
The charges come almost two weeks after the massacre in which Bales allegedly left his base in the early morning hours and shot Afghan civilians, including women and nine children, while they slept in their beds, then burned some of the bodies.
On February 2, 2012 a military judge ruled that American terrorist Nidal Malik Hasan (نضال مالك حسن) will stand trial on June 12, 2012. Lt.Col. Kris Poppe, Hasan's lead attorney, said the request to delay the trial was "purely a matter of necessity of adequate time for pretrial preparation". The prosecution is seeking the death penalty.
Hasan continues to receive paychecks and medical expenses are paid by the military.
As you open your pockets for the next natural disaster, please keep these facts in mind:
The American Red Cross President and CEO Marsha J. Evans salary for the year was $651,957 plus expenses
The United Way President Brian Gallagher receives a $375,000 base salary along with numerous expense benefits.
UNICEF CEO Caryl M. Stern receives $1,200,000 per year (100k per month) plus all expenses including a ROLLS ROYCE. Less than 5 cents of your donated dollar goes to the cause.
The Salvation Army's Commissioner Todd Bassett receives a salary of only $13,000 per year (plus housing) for managing this $2 billion dollar organization. 96 percent of donated dollars go to the cause.
The American Legion National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary. Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!
The Veterans of Foreign Wars National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary. Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!
The Disabled American Veterans National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary. Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!
The Military Order of Purple Hearts National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary. Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!
The Vietnam Veterans Association National Commander receives a $0.00 zero salary. Your donations go to help Veterans and their families and youth!
23-year-old Mohammad Merah was a French citizen of Algerian descent. He was apprehended in Afghanistan by Afghan security forces and turned over to the French Army - NOT the US Army as has been mistakenly reported. Because of his French citizenship the French Army repatriated him to France; he was not detained by their law enforcement or processed through their judicial system. According to my sources, Merah was amongst those 450+ prisoners in the Taliban mass escape from the prison in Kandahar in April of 2011.
French special tactics police officer at the scene of yesterday's gun battle toting an HK MP7 submachine gun chambered for 4.6x30mm - ammunition includes pointed all-steel bullets with brass jacket; manufacturer claims the 100% penetration of the CRISAT bodyarmor - 1.6mm of Titanium plus 20 layers of Kevlar - at the distance of 200 meters.
TOULOUSE, France (Reuters) - French police launched an assault late on Wednesday on an apartment where a gunman suspected of killing seven people in the name of al Qaeda was holed up, officials said.
Three loud blasts were heard at the site in the southwest city of Toulouse just before midnight, which blew open the door of the apartment where the gunman had been holed up since 3 a.m. (10.00 p.m. EDT), a police source said.
"I confirm that the assault has started," a police source told Reuters. The deputy mayor of Toulouse, Jean-Pierre Havrin, confirmed that negotiations had ended and the assault had begun.
Police had been trying to get 24-year-old Mohamed Merah to turn himself over after he fired through the door at them while they tried to storm his apartment in the suburbs of Toulouse in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
The 24-year-old Muslim shooter has been bottled up by France's elite RAID commandos since 3 a.m. (10.00 p.m. EDT) inside a five-storey building in a suburb of Toulouse.
Continuing on our quest to bust out those who would steal honor not rightly theirs, this came across the email machine the other day - S.L.
Sean,
I’m looking for some answers. My daughter was involved with a guy who claims Marine Corps service. She now believes he’s a phony. We have found his picture included on a website titled ‘heros or villains’. This site is affiliated with pownetwork.org I’ve done some searching to determine the validity of both of these sites but haven’t concluded much.
Can you verify to me that these sites are ‘genuine’ and that I can trust their determinations?
The man’s name is Cody M. Hall. He has evidently claimed service in Iraq and Afghanistan but has never served.
Thanks for any light you can shed.
My Reply
If the attached photo set is your Cody Hall, then I have to say that yes it appears he is a phony.
I'd call this guy on being a phony based on the photos alone:
- upper left photo of him in USMC dress blues (reverse image possibly taken in a mirror) - ONLY photo in Marines uniform
- upper right snapshot in JROTC (high school level ROTC) uniform with girlfriend cut out
- lower right US Army uniform (rank = Private First Class) cami'd face - looks like he just spent a day in the woods playing soldier, sitting in the driver's seat of a non-military sedan
- lower left photo (again reverse image looks like self-portrait taken in a mirror with a cellphone camera) US Army uniform with weird rank insignia - possibly cadet rank
What really kills this guy is the pdf clip they included from their inquiry to the US Marine Corps:
"Please note that personnel actions regarding Marines are maintained in their Official Military Personnel File (OMPF). Accordingly, in an effort to assist you, we intiated a search for M. Hall's OMPF. However, despite a diligent search, knowledgeable personnel with the Manpower and Reserve Affairs (M&RA) Department of this Headquarters were unable to verify that Mr. Hall is currently or had formerly served in teh U.S. Marine Corps or the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve."
Your daughter's suspicions appear spot-on, and I recommend she distance herself from this guy sooner than later.
Bingham came from an illustrious family. His father (on whom the fictional character Indiana Jones was based) was the archeologist who unearthed the Inca City of Machu Picchu, Peru, in 1911. Harry entered the US diplomatic service and, in 1939, was posted to Marseilles, France, as American Vice-Consul.
The USA was then neutral and, not wishing to annoy Marshal Petain’s puppet Vichy regime, President Roosevelt’s government ordered its representatives in Marseilles not to grant visas to any Jews . Bingham found this policy immoral and, risking his career, did all in his power to undermine it.
In defiance of his bosses in Washington, he granted over 2,500 USA visas to Jewish and other refugees, including the artists Marc Chagall and Max Ernst and the family of the writer Thomas Mann. He also sheltered Jews in his Marseilles home, and obtained forged identity papers to help Jews in their dangerous journeys across Europe. He worked with the French underground to smuggle Jews out of France into Franco’s Spain or across the Mediterranean and even contributed to their expenses out of his own pocket. In 1941,
Washington lost patience with him. He was sent to Argentina, where later he continued to annoy his superiors by reporting on the movements of Nazi war criminals.
Eventually, he was forced out of the American diplomatic service completely. Bingham died almost penniless in 1988. Little was known of his extraordinary activities until his son found some letters in his belongings after his death. He has now been honored by many groups and organizations including the United Nations and the State of Israel.
I've been aware of the Pigford Case since the late 90's and even the later developments but this gentleman points out some details which will boggle your mind. Initially a legitimate grievance of black farmers against the Department of Agriculture, the Pigford Case has morphed into a multi-billion dollar "Reparations Payments" scam and guess who is behind it? I'm not naming names but his initials are Barack Hussein Obama. - S.L.
Joseph Kony is the leader of the The Lord's Resistance Army (also Lord's Resistance Movement or Lakwena Part Two). Kony proclaims himself the spokesperson of God and a spirit medium, primarily of the Holy Spirit, which the group believes can represent itself in many manifestations. Ideologically, the group is a syncretic mix of of mysticism, Acholi tribal nationalism, and Christianity, and claims to be establishing a theocratic state based on the Ten Commandments and local Acholi tradition.
The Lord's Resistance Army is a militant group that was formed in 1987 in the Acholi ethnic region of Northern Uganda. Initially, the LRA was an outgrowth and continuation of the larger armed resistance movement waged by some of the Acholi people against a central Ugandan government which they felt marginalized them at the expense of Southern Ugandan ethnic groups, such as the Baganda. The group operates in northern Uganda, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic.
The LRA is accused of widespread human rights violations, including murder, abduction, mutilation, and forcing children to participate in hostilities. There have also been reports of cannibalism and child-sex slavery within the group.
A report on one of the LRA's brutal terror campaigns in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
ESTIMATED TROOP STRENGTH:
In 2007, the government of Uganda claimed that the LRA had only 500 or 1,000 soldiers in total, but other sources estimated that there could have been as many as 3,000 soldiers, along with about 1,500 women and children. By 2011, unofficial estimates were in the range of 300 to 400 combatants, with more than half believed to be abductees. The bulk of the soldiers fighting for the LRA are children. According to Livingstone Sewanyana, executive director of the Foundation for Human Rights Initiative, Yoweri Museveni was the first to use child soldiers in this conflict. Since the LRA first started fighting in 1987 they may have forced well over 10,000 boys and girls into combat, often killing family, neighbors and school teachers in the process.
Many of these children were put on the front lines so the casualty rate for these children has been high. They have often used children to fight because they are easy to replace by raiding schools or villages. The soldiers are organized into independent squads of 10 or 20 soldiers. Sudan has provided military assistance to the LRA, in response to Uganda lending military support to the Sudan People's Liberation Army.
UNITED STATES INVOLVEMENT:
In May 2010, President Barack Obama signed into law the Lord's Resistance Army Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act, legislation aimed at stopping Joseph Kony and the LRA. The bill passed unanimously in the Senate on 11 March 2010 with 65 senators as cosponsors, then passed unanimously in the House of Representatives on 13 May 2010 with 202 representatives as cosponsors.
On 24 November 2010, Obama delivered a strategy document to Congress, asking for more money to disarm Kony and the LRA.
On 14 October 2011, President Obama announced that he had ordered the deployment of 100 US military advisors (with a mandate to train, assist and provide intelligence) to help combat the Lord's Resistance Army. It has been reported that the bulk of the troops are from the Army Special Forces. Obama said that the deployment did not need explicit approval from Congress, as the 2010 Lord’s Resistance Army Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act already authorized "increased, comprehensive U.S. efforts to help mitigate and eliminate the threat posed by the LRA to civilians and regional stability". The military advisors will be armed, and will provide assistance and advice, but "will not themselves engage LRA forces unless necessary for self-defense". The advisers will operate in South Sudan, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, subject to approval by those states. The military advisors will not operate independently of the host states. Human Rights Watch welcomed the deployment, which they had previously advocated for. General Carter Ham, the head of US Africa Command, said that his best estimate was that Joseph Kony was probably in the Central African Republic, not located in Uganda.
The LRA are a scary bunch of brainwashed central Africans led by a mad man who is conducting a Reign of Terror over the region. I came across a fantastic website: LRACrisisTracker.org These folks are doing amazing work assembling critical information and attempting to spread the word.
American traitor Omar Hammami who quickly rose through the ranks in Shabaab, al Qaeda's affiliate in Somalia, now says he fears the terror group may kill him.
Hammami a.k.a. Abu Mansour al Amriki ("the American"), released a short, 1:09-minute-long video in which he said he fears Shabaab may kill him due to differences with strategy and the implementation of Islamic law. Hammani's statement was posted by a jihadist known as "somalimuhajirwarrior," or "foreign Somali warrior," on a YouTube website earlier today, the SITE Intelligence Group reported.
"To whomever it may reach from the Muslims, from Abu Mansour al-Amriki, I record this message today because I feel that my life may be endangered by Harakat Shabaab al-Mujahideen due to some differences that occurred between us regarding matters of the Shariah (Islamic law) and matters of the strategy," according to a transcript of the statement that has been provided by the SITE Intelligence Group.
Am I the only one who sees the irony here? All I gotta say is you chose your lot in life - to join forces with a pack of murderous savages. Now they're turning their knives on you, and you want our sympathy? Don't hold your breath, scumbag.
I should start another blog: DESPATCHES FROM THE WAR ON WOMEN - the whole phony, contrived women's contraception scandal that was manufactured and propagated directly from the Obama Oval Office in a contrived attempt to draw voters attention away from the 20,000 ton gorilla in the room - the economy / unemployment / gas prices / housing slump - and recruit women voters to the Democrat cause.
The whole thing had all the earmarks of a Saul Alinsky manouever - as a strategist I saw this right away (Unconventional Warfare Rule #1 - Know Your Enemy. Rule #2 - Never Underestimate Your Enemy) and that's how I was able to call it for what it was.
How can this possibly be? Rush was supposed to be fired by now (maybe somebody can explaing to me how a self-employed businessman gets fired I still haven't figured that one out) or at the very least banished to Sirius yet there he is still going strong on the AM band; and after a week of phony outrage and strained attempts to brand Conservative Republicans as misogynist Neanderthals, women are voting in droves for the OTHER guy they tried to character-assassinate: Rick Santorum.
There IS a War on Women but it's not the Republicans who are waging it; the War on Women is being conducted by the Democrats and their willing minions in the Leftwing Lamestream Media and we all know who is on top of the Priority Targets list: Sarah Palin. They said ten times MORE deplorable things about Sarah than Rush EVER said about that flake Sandra Fluke and we're all still waiting for anything resembling an apology or a cry for civility.
Come to think of it I'm still waiting for an apology from the President of the United States for calling me and all my like-minded buddies "teabaggers" - we all know what that means Mr. President and so do you but just in case there's still somebody uninformed out there as to how Barack Hussein Obama refers to the majority of the Republican Party I'll fill you in: "teabagging" is slang for a sexual stunt that involves placing one's scrotum into the mouth of one's sexual partner - an act usually associated with the homosexual community.
As far as I'm concerned Rush shouldn't have apologized. What did he have to apologize for? Calling Sandra Fluke a slut and a prostitue? Both those words appear in the Bible multiple times, and excuse me but if you require $3000 of contraception a year I'd venture to say you ARE a slut, and if you expect me and everybody else to fund your fun then you ARE a prostitute.
Anyway I'm still waiting for an explaination for how and why Sandra Fluke - a self-proclaimed Lesbian - needs birth control for in the first place ? ? ? What? To keep her from CLONING herself?
Hmmm . . . come to think of it if there is a risk of THAT happening maybe the $3000 worth of contraception isn't such an outrageous concept after all . . .
In the ancient world, Ireland was the very edge of knowledge, a mysterious island with fertile soil but inhabited by strange and savage people. Ireland was never conquered by the Romans, indeed, the island’s recorded history did not begin until St. Patrick visited the island in the 4th century AD.
Saint Patrick (c. 387 – 17 March 460) was a Roman Briton and Christian missionary, most generally recognized patron saint of Ireland. When he was about 16, he was captured from Wales by Irish raiders and taken as a slave to Ireland, where he lived for six years before escaping and returning to his family. After entering the Church, he returned to Ireland as an ordained bishop in the north and west of the island, but little is known about the places where he worked. By the seventh century, he had come to be revered as the patron saint of Ireland.
The Book of Kells is the most treasured piece of literature in Ireland. Its origins are shrouded in a haze of mystery due to the chaos of the seventh and eighth centuries, but despite the ravaging of many a monastery in those days, the Book of Kells survived.
What makes the Book of Kells so fascinating and astonishing is the intricate illumination work done on each page of the text. Few examples of such quality medieval illumination exist elsewhere. The Book of Kells is a manuscript primarily dedicated to the four Gospels, and each page is a work of loving, carefully rendered art.
The Book of Kells now resides in Trinity College in Dublin, encased in glass, with one page turned every month for the viewing pleasure of visitors.
Thanks to everyone inquiring about my health - the fever lasted three or four days which is longer than usual. After the doc diagnosed pneumonia the antibiotics went to work. I was out of work for a week - which for me is unheard of - had some lingering chest congestion for a week after that but the thing that really got my attention was the weakened state this thing left me in. It's 2+ weeks and only after getting on the Guiness Recovery Diet am I now getting back into my workout routine. Happy Saint Paddy's Day!
24-year-old burglar Gregory McCalium got more than he bargained for when he broke into the home of former boxing champ and ex-Royal Engineer Frank Corti, age 72.
OK I admit it - I took one look at this thing and thought "not another Navy SEAL tribute" . . . but I've got faith in the people who run the NRA Life of Duty so I looked at what they have going here.
The story of Adam Brown's youth parallels my own journey - how I ended up in the military and how I became a Green Beret. Adam Brown fell in battle against the enemies of our country and for that he has earned a place in Valhalla and we must honor his memory. The tribute put together here by NRA LOD and his family is remarkable, it is fitting and it does great honor to a worthy man. "Respect" - S.L.
NRA's Life of Duty is releasing this story in honor of Adam's passing on March 17, 2010 – the day the our nation lost one of it’s finest operators, husband, father, son, brother, brother-in-law, friend and inspiration.
If you are interested in reading more about Adam’s inspirational story, I encourage you to pre-order a copy of Fearless by Eric Blehm. Eric also wrote the book The Only Thing Worth Dying For, the heroic story of Special Forces Operational Detachment "Alpha" (ODA) 574.
This table comes from a report by Shanea J. Watkins, Phd, originally posted on the Heritage Foundation website, 21 August 2008.
The findings here - that the majortiy of recruits and officers are from the upper financial tiers of our society - flies in the face of the oft-repeated Liberal myth that America's wars are fought by the poorest members of society, who cannot afford to go to college and gain entry to a better career.
In other words, people who go into the military are too stupid to do anything else, and therefore the military is like a form of Welfare. I have actually heard people say this right to my face.
These statistics and data analysis are in keeping with my own personal observations during my service in the Combat Arms from 1983 to 2008; (82d Airborne Division - Infantry - 5 years; Special Forces 20 years. - S.L.
Bradley Manning - traitor for releasing hundreds of thousands of classified files via wikileaks, and poster child why gayblades should not be allowed to serve in the military - has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
This - combined with the Nobel Peace Prize they gave Obama for doing absolutely nothing except winning an election - proves one thing:
The Nobel Prize Committee has rendered itself absolutely meaningless.
Bradley Manning is currently serving as a communal sockpuppet at United States Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth.
I became aware of George's passing yesterday afternoon from one of the members of Team STORMBRINGER.
George died from complications following an aneurism in the brain.
He will be buried in Arlington - I intend to be there.
I knew George Miller when I was in 3d SFG. His wife works at Headquarters, United States Army Special Operations Command (USASCO), across the street from 3d Group HQ. She was like a Den Mother to us guys; she often wore the sweatshirt from the last ODA George served on - ODA 325 (Combat Diver). I served on the same ODA.
I worked with George after his retirement when he was Security Manager at the Special Warfare Center. After I retired, George helped with references that led directly to the position I hold today in the security profession. Last time I saw him was this past August (2011) at Camp Mackall, NC. Everybody who knew George Miller remarks on the value the advice and guidance that came out of his incredible anecdotes.
George was of the Jewish faith, with family connects in Israel. Few people are aware that as a young Staff Sergeant in 1982-1983, George was seconded to the IDF. He wore an IDF uniform and rolled into Lebanon in an IDF armored personnel carrier. A true Unconventional Warrior, George had many more adventures "off the beaten path."
George Miller was a good man and an honorable Special Forces soldier, a credit to the Regiment and to the United States of America.
He will be missed - S.L.
Retired Command Sgt. Maj. George E. Miller - 1955-2012
The Independent
ASHLAND
Retired Command Sergeant Major George E. Miller departed this life on March 11, 2012, in Duke University Hospital in Raleigh.
Miller was born in Ashland on May 10, 1955, and was a 1973 graduate of Paul G. Blazer High School.
CSM Miller joined the Army in July 1973 and joined the Special Forces in 1977. He graduated from the Special Forces Qualification Course in 1978 and was first assigned to C Co, 1st BN, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) until 1983. Miller was next assigned to A Co 1st BN, 10th SFG (AB) in Bad Tolz, Germany, from 1983 to 1985.
In 1985, Miller was assigned to Key West at Warfare Center Scuba School. In 1987, Miller returned to Fort Bragg as instructor with the Special Operations Target Interdiction Course. In 1990, he returned to A Co, 1st BN, 10th SFG in Bad Tolz, Germany, as Team Sergeant until 1992.
In 1992, Miller returned to Fort Bragg as a member of 3rd SFG. His assignments include: Team Sergeant on SFOD-A 325; First Sergeant of Group Support Company, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne); Company Sergeant Major, Co B, 1st BN, 3rd Special Forces Group, (Airborne); Battalion Operations Sergeant Major, 2nd BN, 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne); and Group Operations Sergeant Major for 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne).
Miller’s combat assignments include Operation Desert Storm, Operation Provide Comfort and Operation Uphold Democracy. In October 2000, Miller was assigned to 1st BN, 7th SFG, where he served as command sergeant major until he retired on June 1, 2004.
Miller’s awards and schools include the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, the Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Southwest Asia Service Medal, Humanitarian Services Medal, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the Master Parachutist Badge, the Special Forces Tab and the Combat Diver Badge. His foreign awards include Belgian, Brazilian, Jordanian, German, Greek, Honduran, Tunisian and Israeli Paratrooper Wings. Schools include Special Forces Medical, Combat Diver, Dive Supervisor and Dive Medic’s courses; the Special Forces Operations and Intelligence Course, Special Forces Target Interdiction Course and Jumpmaster.
Miller is survived by his wife, Karen E. Martin Miller of Tampa, Fla.; his mother, Sarah Hall Miller of Ashland; two sisters, Judy Miller Sherrill and Tammy Miller McVey, both of Richmond; a son, George Miller III; a grandson; three nephews; four nieces; five great-nieces; and two great-nephews. CSM Miller was preceded in death by his father, George E. Miller, and a sister, Gail Miller Fultz.
U.S. soldiers keep watch at the entrance of a military base near Alkozai village following the shooting of Afghan civilians allegedly committed by a U.S. soldier in Panjwayi district, Kandahar province on March 11, 2012.
So an American goes rogue & pulls a terrorist act on a Muslim population & the Taliban are all up in arms. Am I the only one who sees the utter hypocrisy here? Eff 'em - what's good for the goose is good for the gander. Don't get me wrong I'm not endorsing what happened over there - ALL terrorists are criminal scum; US soldier massmurderer, Taliban alike - and this guy deserves to swing from a rope like all the rest of the terr's.
Hard on the heels of the Koran burning episode it's difficult to imagine we can be combat effective in Afghanistan anymore. Sun Tzu would recognize that the enemy has managed to make us combat ineffective on that particular battlefield and he would advise that it is folly to remain in place and slug it out in what has become at long last become a quagmire; not least of all because our national leadership and our incompetant NATO allies have turned the war effort into a gigantic legalize nightMare.
US soldiers venture forth on patrols with a lawyer in their back pocket known as the ROE - Rules of Engagement - that makes closing with and destroying a committed enemy next to impossible. To make matters worse, any support they expect from NATO counterparts has to be approved at Minister of Defense level of whatever country is fronting up the support. What this means is you're getting ready to take your element through the wire on patrol and at the last minute you are informed that the Euroweenie element you expected to back you up as QRF - Quick Reaction Force - has been pulled at the last minute. Suddenly you're on your own in Indian Country - this is no way to fight a war; by committee.
The place isn't called the Graveyard of Empires for nothing - since time immemorial Afghanistan has been easy to take, impossible to hold. Alexander made it all the way there and wept because there were no more worlds to conquer; the British Empire lost an entire army there . . .
Remnants of an Army by Lady Butler
. . . even the mighty, mighty Soviet Red Army got it's ass handed to it by a bunch of stone age tribesmen armed with Lee-Enfields and Stingers. At least we gave as good as we got if not better - we liberated millions, kicked ass on a bunch of green-toothed Taliban savages and shut down al Qaeda's main training grounds. Now it's time to GTFO take our bats & balls & go home. Plenty of GWOT to fight elsewhere . . .
I've been a bit quiet lately, that's because I've been sick. Here's the latest:
Yesterday was the first time in two weeks I woke up without coughing - between this thing & you I have had a scary look at my own mortality. No big deal but nothing compared to what I'm used to.
Saturday my dog Yogi got savaged by the beast dog that lives next door - most of the wounds were puncture wounds and I treated them with antibiotic oinkment, but the beast dog took out three chunks of skin approx 5-10mm diameter each.
Dog Yogi
When we got back to the house and I got the dog calmed down I got out my crash kit and went to work.
Before I got started I changed out of my good pants and put on a pair of fatigues - didn't want blood all over my good trousers. Then I set up shop in the hallway - where the dog only had 2 ways to go - had the girls hold her down and went to work. I shaved the fur back, zapped in a little local anaesthetic and threw in 12 sutures. The place looked like a safehouse in the good old days; blood all over the place, bloody bandages and debris all over the place, a bottle of cognac off to the side to sterilize instruments & fortify the surgeon . . .
My daughters were saying, "Where did you learn how to do medicine, Daddy?" I was laughing - happy in my work because I'm always happy when I'm soldiering - "Well its like this; there's a few things every good Special Forces engineer ought to be able to do if he's worth a damn . . . "
"SEW UP DOGS???"
"People, too . . . that's part of what we do . . ."
TigerLily took Yogi to the vet today. The vet’s remarks were (and I quote): “Who worked on this dog? A South African heart surgeon? Whoever it is, he’s not only a medical miracle worker, he’s an artist!”
TigerLily: “Well, my husband was a Special Forces soldier you know . . .”
Vet: “SAY NO MORE ! ! ! Those guys are trained to fly 747’s in case there’s a hijack situation and the pilots are killed and they have to land the airplane! EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT ! ! ! For a Green Beret - BRAIN SURGERY IS EASIER THAN CHINESE ARITHMATIC ! ! !”
Whatever . . . anything to perpetuate the myth; it's all part of our psyops campaign to strike fear into the hearts of our enemies years before we even appear on the battlefield. Dog Yogi is okay; there was nothing more they could do so they handed out some painkillers and some antibiotic oinkment and sent TigerLily & dog on their way . . .
No we have never met but I carry Rush Limbaugh's site logo & link over to the right there - I've been a loyal listener ever since I got back from Okinawa in 1992 and first heard of the guy. He was a beacon of light throughout the national disgrace that was the Clinton years, an inspiration following the horrors of 9/11 and the difficult war years that ensued, and has been a beacon of hope through these difficult times of stress and anxiety brought on by Barack Hussein Obama and the Democrats in Congress.
The mission of this blog is to honor our warrior class, to further the message of freedom & liberty as expressed in our founding documents: the Declaration of Independence, the US Constitution and the Federalist and anti-Federalist Papers, to report on the international security situation and the threat of Islamic Fundamentalism, and to explore my personal philosophy.
A supporting task derived from that mission statement is to support and defend the US Constitution - an oath I first took twenty-nine years ago and I still take seriously today. The last time I looked at the Constitution - which was today - Freedom of Speech is the first thing covered in the Bill of Rights.
Right now El Rushbo is under a lot of Liberal flak – significantly more than usual - Rush Limbaugh’s freedom of expression is under assault from no less an office than the President of the United States, and I say that because Barack Obama saw fit to wade into it and involve his daughters in Rush's unfortunate remarks regarding a 30-year-old “coed” named Sandra Fluke, of course.
Ronald Reagan said, “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”
Obama has already walked all over the First Amendment- that's what led to this entire contrived scandal in the first place: NOBODY ever suggested constraining women's contraception. Obama just needed a distraction away from forcing Georgetown - a Catholic institution - to provide birth control & the day-after abortion pill to women AGAINST the beliefs of the Catholic Church.
This was a no-win situation for Obama, so he did a Saul Alinsky head-fake and so they trotted out this Fluke apparatchnik. Far from being a victim as the lamestream media portrays her Sandra Fluke is a Democrat operative with a long resume of agitating and carrying on the cause from within the Liberal bastion ivory towers of Academia.
This thing is so pathetically obvious - the only thing Rush is guilty of here is muddying the waters and playing into Team Obama's hands.
If Liberals could shut up Rush & the Tea Party they would. That's what political correctness is all about.
Right now there is a dedicated disinformation campaign going against Rush Limbaugh, from the Oval Office and the halls of Congress all the way down to an evil, slimy, pointed-headed forked-tongued sh*thouse lawyer named Gloria Allred who has come out from under her rock to call for Rush Limbaugh’s arrest.
I guess Ms. Allred was asleep in class the day they covered the 1st Amendment in law school. Kind of ironic that the basis of her call for Rush’s persecution is his so-called “attack on a young law student who was simply exercising her free speech”.
Gloria Allred is the epitome of the saying, “Never confuse education with intelligence.”
The stupider this thing gets, the more the Liberals seek to squeeze mileage out of it. The latest angle is that Rush is losing advertisers because of his words. This is classic disinformation, and true to form the Lamestream Media has picked up the talking points memo and is parroting the party line all over the place.
HERE is what Rush has to say about the Left’s propaganda theme regarding his advertisers.
Bottom Line Up Front:
• RL has not lost 28 (or 32 or whatever) sponsors.
• Three brand-new sponsors starting in the next two weeks.
• Two sponsors who have canceled have asked to return.
This thing will backfire on Obama just like everything contrived he has tried to pull off so far: mark my words.
Fact: Rush Limbaugh apologized for his unfortunate comments.
I’m still waiting for the President of the United States to apologize for calling me & all my like-minded friends & associates “Teabaggers”. Everybody knows what this word means, to include Barack Obama; it is a filthier and slimier term than “slut” or “prostitute” (both words happen to be in the Bible, by the way).
I'm still waiting for Bill Maher to apologize for all the deplorable and disparaging things he said about Sarah Palin – ten million times WORSE than anything Rush Limbaugh has ever uttered in his entire career.
I’m still waiting for Barack Obama to denounce Jimmy Hoffa Jr. for physically threatening the Tea Party and insulting us while he was at it, warming up the crowd for the President of the United States, who sat back and chuckled.
I’m still waiting for Barack Obama to call for Wanda Sykes to apologize for her remarks about Rush Limbaugh dying of kidney failure – in the presence of the President of the United States and the First Lady, who laughed and applauded her remarks.
I'm still waiting for Barack Obama to denounce Bill Maher’s remarks about Sarah Palin and I'm still waiting for Obama's super PAC to return Bill Maher's $1 million donation.
Let's see the Liberals put their money where their mouth is. My prediction: Hell will freeze over first.
If any one single person is the face of the Tea Party it is Rush Limbaugh – he has enough influence to swing an election and the 2010 mid-terms are proof positive; the greatest overturn of political power in this nation since the Civil War.
You listening, Barry Soetero? November is coming, and we haven’t gone away . . .
Sean Linnane is the pseudonym of a retired Special Forces career NCO (1st SFG, 3d SFG, 10th SFG). I served with honor on five continents; I continue to serve in other capacities.
