The First Dance.

Sweet!

Scott Southworth is a true Hero.

Capt. Scott Southworth knew he'd face violence, political strife and blistering heat when he was deployed to one of Baghdad's most dangerous areas. But he didn't expect Ala'a Eddeen. Ala'a was 9 years old, strong of will but weak of body — he suffered from cerebral palsy and weighed just 55 pounds. He lived among about 20 kids with physical or mental disabilities at the Mother Teresa orphanage, under the care of nuns who preserved this small oasis in a dangerous place.

On Sept. 6, 2003, halfway through his 13-month deployment, Southworth and his military police unit paid a visit to the orphanage. They played and chatted with the children; Southworth was talking with one little girl when Ala'a dragged his body to the soldier's side.

Black haired and brown eyed, Ala'a spoke to the 31-year-old American in the limited English he had learned from the sisters. He recalled the bombs that struck government buildings across the Tigris River.

"Bomb-Bing! Bomb-Bing!" Ala'a said, raising and lowering his fist.

"I'm here now. You're fine," the captain said.

Over the next 10 months, the unit returned to the orphanage again and again. The soldiers would race kids in their wheelchairs, sit them in Humvees and help the sisters feed them.

To Southworth, Ala'a was like a little brother. But Ala'a — who had longed for a soldier to rescue him — secretly began referring to Southworth as "Baba," Arabic for "Daddy."

Then, around Christmas, a sister told Southworth that Ala'a was getting too big. He would have to move to a government-run facility within a year.

"Best case scenario was that he would stare at a blank wall for the rest of his life," Southworth said.

To this day, he recalls the moment when he resolved that that would not happen.

"I'll adopt him," he said.

___

Before Southworth left for Iraq, he was chief of staff for a state representative. He was single, worked long days and squeezed in his service as a national guardsman — military service was a family tradition. His great-great-greatgrandfather served in the Civil War, his grandfather in World War II, his father in Vietnam.

The family had lived in the tiny central Wisconsin city of New Lisbon for 150 years. Scott was raised as an evangelical Christian; he attended law school with a goal of public service, running unsuccessfully for state Assembly at the age of 25.

There were so many reasons why he couldn't bring a handicapped Iraqi boy into his world.

He had no wife or home; he knew nothing of raising a disabled child; he had little money and planned to run for district attorney in his home county.

Just as important, Iraqi law prohibits foreigners from adopting Iraqi children.

Southworth prayed and talked with family and friends.

His mother, who had cared for many disabled children, explained the difficulty. She also told him to take one step at a time and let God work.

Southworth's decision was cemented in spring 2004, while he and his comrades watched Mel Gibson's film, "The Passion of the Christ." Jesus Christ's sacrifice moved him. He imagined meeting Christ and Ala'a in heaven, where Ala'a asked: "Baba, why didn't you ever come back to get me?"

"Everything that I came up with as a response I felt ashamed. I wouldn't want to stand in the presence of Jesus and Ala'a and say those things to him."

And so, in his last weeks in Iraq, Southworth got approval from Iraq's Minister of Labor to take Ala'a to the United States for medical care.

___

His parents had filed signatures so he wouldn't miss the cutoff to run for district attorney. He knocked on doors, telling people he wanted to be tough on criminals who committed injustices against children.

He never mentioned his intention to adopt Ala'a.

He won office — securing a job and an income.

Everything seemed to be in place. But when Southworth contacted an immigration attorney, he was told it would be nearly impossible to bring Ala'a to the United States.

Undaunted, Southworth and the attorney started the paperwork to bring Ala'a over on humanitarian parole, used for urgent reasons or significant public benefit.

A local doctor, a cerebral palsy expert, a Minneapolis hospital, all said they would provide Ala'a free care. Other letters of support came from a minister, the school district, the lieutenant governor, a congressman, chaplain, a sister at the orphanage and an Iraqi doctor.

"We crossed political boundaries. We crossed religious boundaries. There was just a massive effort — all on behalf of this little boy who desperately needed people to actually take some action and not just feel sorry for him," Southworth says.

He mailed the packet on Dec. 16, 2004, to the Department of Homeland Security.

On New Year's Eve, his cell phone rang. It was Ala'a.

"What are you doing?" Scott asked him.

"I was praying,'" Ala'a responded.

"Well, what were you praying for?"

"I prayed that you would come to take me to America," Ala'a said.

Southworth almost dropped the phone. Ala'a knew nothing of his efforts, and he couldn't tell him yet for fear that the boy might inadvertently tell the wrong person, upending the delicate process.

By mid-January, Homeland Security called Southworth's attorney to say it had approved humanitarian parole. Within three hours, Southworth had plane tickets.

He hardly slept as he worked the phones to make arrangements, calling the American embassy, hotels and the orphanage. His Iraqi translator agreed to risk his life to get Ala'a to the embassy to obtain documentation. Like a dream, all the pieces fell into place.

Southworth returned to Iraq for the first time since a deployment that left him emotionally, physically and spiritually exhausted.

His unit had trained Iraqi police from sunup to sundown; he saw the devastation wrought by two car bombings, and counted dead bodies. Mortar and rocket attacks were routine. Some 20 in his unit were wounded, and one died. He knew that nothing could be taken for granted in Baghdad.

So when he saw Ala'a in the airport for the first time since leaving Iraq, he was relieved.

"He was in my custody then. I could hug him. I could hold him. I could protect him.

"And forever started."

They made it to Wisconsin late Jan. 20, 2005. The next morning, Ala'a awoke to his first sight of snow.

He closed his eyes and grimaced.

"Baba! Baba! The water is getting all over me!"

"It's not water, it's snooooow," Southworth told him.

___

Police found Ala'a abandoned on a Baghdad street at around 3 years old. No one knows where he came from.

In all his life in Iraq, Ala'a saw a doctor 10 times. He surpassed that in his first six months in the United States.

Ala'a's cerebral palsy causes low muscle tone, spastic muscles in the legs, arms and face. It hinders him when he tries to crawl, walk or grasping objects. He needs a wheelchair to get around, often rests his head on his shoulder and can't easily sit up.

Physical therapy has helped him control his head and other muscles. He can now maneuver his way out of his van seat and stabilize his legs on the ground.

"I'm not the same guy I used to be," he says.

He clearly has thrived. At 13, he's doubled his weight to 111 pounds.

Ala'a's condition doesn't affect his mind, although he's still childlike — he wants to be a Spiderman when he grows up.

Ala'a's English has improved and he loves music and school, math and reading especially. He gets mad when snow keeps him home, even though it's his second favorite thing, after his father.

At first, he didn't want to talk about Iraq; he would grow angry when someone tried to talk to him in Arabic. But in the fall of 2006, Scott showed Ala'a's classmates an Arabic version of "Sesame Street" and boasted how Ala'a knew two languages and could teach them.

Soon he was teaching his aide and his grandmother, LaVone.

LaVone is a fixture in Ala'a's life, supporting her son as he juggles his career and fatherhood. One day, she asked Ala'a if he missed his friends in Iraq.

Would he like to visit them?

Big tears filled his eyes.

"Well, honey, what's the matter?" asked LaVone.

"Oh, no, Grandma. No. Baba says that I can come to live with him forever," he pleaded.

"Oh, no, no," the grandmother said, crying as well. "We would never take you back and leave you there forever. We want you to be Baba's boy forever."

___

Southworth knew once he got Ala'a out of Iraq, the hardest part would be over. Iraq had bigger problems to deal with than the whereabouts of a single orphan.

On June 4, Ala'a officially became Southworth's son. Though he was born in the spring of 1994, they decided to celebrate his birthday as the day they met — Sept. 6.

Life has settled into a routine. Father and son have moved into a new house with an intercom system, a chair lift to the basement and toilet handles. Southworth showers him, brushes his teeth and washes his hands. He has traded in his Chrysler Concorde for a minivan — it was too hard to lift his son out of the car.

In October, the Wisconsin's deputy adjunct general gave Southworth, now a major, permission to change units because of Ala'a. His former unit was going to Guantanamo Bay for a one-year deployment, and he didn't want to leave his son behind, at least for now.

He hopes one day to marry to his longtime girlfriend and have more children. He may run for Congress or governor someday — he's already won re-election once, and plans to run again next fall.

Not everything is perfect. Ala'a never encountered thunderstorms in Baghdad, and the flash-boom reminds him of bombs. He is starting to get over it, although he still weeps during violent storms.

But Ala'a — who picked out his own name, which means to be near God — knows he's where he belongs. Southworth always says Ala'a picked him, not the other way around. They were brought together, Southworth believes, by a "web of miracles."

Ala'a likes to sing Sarah McLachlan's song, "Ordinary Miracle," from "Charlotte's Web," one of his favorite movies. His head and body lean to one side as he sings off-key.

"It's just another ordinary miracle today. Life is like a gift they say. Wrapped up for you everyday."

Bravo! Scott. You're a man among men.
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Thank You, America.

The following letter and photograph was sent to Michael Yon from LTC Jim Crider, the commander of the 1-4 CAV soldiers based at FOB Falcon, Iraq.

Some time ago, I ran into an old high school friend who asked me if I was still in the Army. After I said yes, he slowly shook his head and asked me how much longer I had to go before I could get out. I am sure that in his mind it is like I am serving a prison sentence counting the days before my release. The truth is that I do not want sympathy. I not only enjoy Army life, I count it a privilege to serve. I frequently receive heart-felt thanks from people I do not even know for serving in the Armed Forces and I appreciate it. Cards, letters, emails and even a standing ovation as I traversed through the Dallas airport going home on leave from Iraq recently. However, I have been feeling lately like I should thank the American people for the honor of fighting for and representing the United States of America.

In the early summer of 2007, an IED detonated on the main street of a neighborhood in our area. A very small food store was the only thing open in the empty streets so I went inside to see if the owner was alright and if perhaps he had seen anything. The owner appeared utterly hopeless and almost in tears as he stood next to his wife. He did not know anything. Months later, the effects of the surge and our counterinsurgency strategy had taken hold. The streets were full of people and that same owner had used a micro-grant to fix up and expand his once lonely store. His grand kids were at his feet as I introduced him to a reporter accompanying me on a walk through the revitalized neighborhood. I had never heard him speak English but this day he looked at me and said, “I tell you , Sir, I love you with all of my heart!”

Right outside of our outpost in southern Baghdad is a dirt poor family of seven with children ranging in age from eighteen months to eleven years. Americans from all walks of life sent us toys and other small items to share with the Iraqi people over the holidays. We thought this would be the perfect family to share some of them with. We stopped by and the kids ran to the trucks. I asked the oldest boy if his parents were home and he said his mom was but that his dad was out picking through the trash. We later learned that he collected soda cans and sold them to make a living.

The children’s mother walked up and was very grateful and in classic Arab tradition insisted that we come into her tiny home for tea. I told her that we could not stay but saw immediately that she was disappointed. She told me that the soldiers never accepted her invitation. I promised her I would return the next day and did so the following afternoon. We arrived and to learn that she had been waiting since early in the morning and made her husband stay home so he could be there. We went inside and sat on the floor but not before she placed blankets under us!

While the mother went to make the tea, her little girl came in and sat down. We asked her how old she was and she did not know. She ran to her mother to ask and came back telling us she was six years old with a big smile. Her father came in shortly after and was thrilled beyond belief that we were in his home to have tea. We shared the only two tea glasses they had. After our visit we took a family photo for them and delivered it framed on Christmas Day.

The experience of war changes people. For some it is a negative change but most manage to absorb the experience and use it to make themselves stronger. I have said goodbye to a mortally wounded soldier in the hospital, spoken to grieving family members of our casualties, and tried to comfort soldiers who just lost their best friend in a single violent moment. I have been under fire, looked insurgents in the eye, and seen corruption up close. I have also seen people emerge from oppression and live with hope for the first time in years. I have seen children reach up and grasp the hands of American soldiers just because they trust them. I have felt the desire to help and then been given the resources to do it. Finally, I have felt the close knit camaraderie that develops when you serve with a group of people fighting for a cause larger than self. Yes, this experience has changed me. I am stronger, more driven, and humbled all at the same time.

Thank you, America.

H/T: Michael Yon Online

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Please help...

Merry Christmas!

Don't forget that today is a celebration of the birth of Jesus, not of buying people a bunch of presents.

Best Job In The World.

Without a doubt!

Probably the best job in the world...

Next to being a Blue Angel that is...

Guess I'll have to work on it...

65%

I'm not very good, I guess...

17

Or maybe I'm just too nice...

A funny for Friday...

The Assumption Song
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RIP...

Sacramento Co. Sheriff's Deputy (Detective) Vu Nguyen, 37, was killed in the line of duty today in Sacramento, California. He was a 10 year veteran of the department.

Det. Nguyen and his partner contacted some known gang-members to identify an unknown Asian male that was with the group, outside a known gang location. The unknown male ran and both gang detectives followed the suspect over fences. Det. Nguyen's partner heard two shots and found his partner shot in the neck. Det. Nguyen later died at the hospital.

Local law enforcement set up a perimeter and are actively searching for the suspect.


RIP Vu...


UPDATE: Dep. Nguyen's murderer has been arrested. He's a 16 yr-old gang-member.

It's about Gratitude...

HatTip: BlackFive

Another murder in a "Gun-Free" zone...

Well, not exactly a "Gun-Free" zone like VA Tech, but most people don't take a gun to Church (I do) so it's effectively a "Gun-Free" zone.

This lady, Jeanne Assam, is a true hero and a total STUD! She did an awesome job of being a sheepdog and putting that POS down for eternity. WELL DONE Jeanne!

Vet lauds female guard who felled gunman
By Kieran Nicholson
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 12/10/2007 04:32:06 PM MST

Authorities say 18-year-old Stephanie Works and 16-year-old Rachael Works died from their injuries after a gunman opened fire outside New Life Church on Sunday. Larry Bourbonnais, a combat-tested Vietnam veteran, said it was the bravest thing he's ever seen.

Bourbonnais, who was among those shot by a gunman Sunday at New Life Church, watched as a security guard, a woman later identified as Jeanne Assam, calmly returned fire and killed the shooter.

"She just started walking toward the gunman firing the whole way," said Bourbonnais, who was shot in the arm. "She was just yelling 'Surrender,' walking and shooting the whole time."

Bourbonnais, 59, had just finished up a hamburger in the cafeteria on the sprawling church campus when he heard gunfire, he recalled.

He headed in the direction of the shots as frightened people ran past him looking to escape to safety.

"Where's the shooter? Where's the shooter?" Bourbonnais kept yelling, he recalled.

Near an entryway in the church, Bourbonnais came upon the gunman and an armed male church security guard who was there with his gun drawn but not firing, he said.

Bourbonnais said he pleaded with the armed guard to give him his weapon.

"Give me your handgun. I've been in combat, and I'm going to take this guy out," Bourbonnais recalled telling the guard. "He kept yelling, 'Get behind me! Get behind me!' He wouldn't hand me his weapon, but he wouldn't do anything."

There was an additional armed security guard there, another man, who also didn't fire, Bourbonnais said.

Bourbonnais yelled at the gunman to draw his attention, he said.

"First, I called him 'Coward' then I called him 'S---head' " Bourbonnais said. "I probably shouldn't have been saying that in church."

That's when the shooter pointed one of his guns at Bourbonnais and fired, he said.

Bourbonnais ducked behind a hollow, decorative pillar and was hit in the arm by a bullet and fragments of the pillar.

At about that moment, Assam, 42, turned a corner with a drawn handgun, walked toward the gunman and yelled "Surrender!" Bourbonnais said.

The gunman pointed a handgun at Assam and fired three shots, Bourbonnais said. She returned fire and just kept walking toward the gunman pressing off round after round.

After the gunman went down, Bourbonnais asked the Assam, a volunteer security guard with the church, how she remained so calm and focused.

Bourbonnais said she replied:

"I was asking the Holy Spirit to guide me the entire time."

God's hand was surely guiding Jeanne's last Sabbath.





Update: Apparently Jeanne is a former Cop. Thank God she was there.

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HOOYAH!!

These guys put some time into this. I'm glad folks like these are on that wall.

Well Done!




And they get to wear cool black flightsuits too...
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This is why...

America is the greatest country on Earth!

Wife Takes Up Husband's Army Enlistment

More than a year after Spc. Alejandro Albarran lost part of his right leg in an explosion in Iraq, he still hasn't decided whether he'll stay in the Army.

"Right now, I'm leaning against it," said the 20-year-old infantryman, looking ahead with distaste to a possible desk job.

Whatever he decides, he won't be leaving Army life behind - because his wife has enlisted to take his place in uniform.

"After everything he's gone through - and he loves the Army - he kind of inspired me," said Janay Albarran. "I made him a promise that I would finish what he started."

While he underwent five-day-a-week rehabilitation to recover his balance and strength on a prosthetic leg at an Army rehabilitation facility in San Antonio, she was in boot camp at Fort Jackson, S.C., learning to shoot a rifle and stand in formation.

Janay Albarran graduated from basic training on Friday, gaining the rank of private. The couple's 2-year-old daughter is staying with a grandmother in Arizona.

Roughly 24,000 of the Army's soldiers, about 9 percent of the force, are married to other soldiers. The Army doesn't have any statistics on how many join after a spouse or family member is badly wounded in combat, but a spokeswoman, Maj. Anne Edgecomb, said she's heard of people joining after the injury or death of a sibling and at least one woman who joined after her husband was killed in combat.

"The courage of our soldiers and their families is remarkable," she said.

Janay Albarran, 19, wasn't always thrilled with the prospect of Army life. She met her husband at a high school football game in Yuma, Ariz., near where they grew up, and learned later from his online profile that he had already signed up for the Army.

"I was like 'Well, I met somebody and he's about to leave.' I was a little upset," said Janay Albarran. "I knew he was joining the Army and we're at war."

The couple married in February 2006, and he was sent to Iraq six months later.

In November 2006, Alejandro Albarran was in a Humvee escorting a unit to the scene of a detonated bomb when a second bomb exploded. After that, he remembers only flashes: a medic over him, the helicopter.

Janay Albarran met him at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington several days later, and they went to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, where some of the most severely wounded are treated.

Efforts to save Alejandro Albarran's lower right leg were unsuccessful. When the pain became too great, he told his wife to let the doctors amputate.

At first, Janay Albarran had to help her husband dress and get out his wheelchair.

"She had to be my memory. My short term memory is bad," said Alejandro, who also suffered a head injury in the blast.

As he regained more mobility, the teen wife who had been afraid of guns decided to take her husband's place in the ranks.

Strictly speaking, Janay Albarran will not be replacing her husband. He was an infantryman, a position not open to women, although he notes with chagrin that she outscored him on her basic training rifle test.

She expects to get a human resources assignment, one less likely to lead to deployment in Iraq.

"It's just another job," Alejandro Albarran said, taking a break between weight lifting sets at the large amputee rehab facility here.

However, a safe assignment isn't guaranteed, and Janay Albarran said she worries about possible deployment when she thinks about their daughter, Iliana.

"That's the only thing that scares me. He's already been hurt," she said. "If I do get deployed, I'm going to miss him so much. But it's nothing I can't handle."

Justice...

Fla. officer who sued family over injuries is fired

By Rene Stutzman
The Orlando Sentinel
Related: Fla. officer injured during rescue sues

CASSELBERRY, Fla. — Two months ago, after hundreds of people from across the country voiced their outrage, Casselberry police Sgt. Andrea Eichhorn dropped her lawsuit against the family of tiny, brain-damaged Joey Cosmillo.

It wasn't enough to save her job.

On Tuesday, the Casselberry Police Department fired her.

Her suit, filed Oct. 1 and abandoned Oct. 12, brought public ridicule to the agency, according to a memo from police Chief John Pavlis. It damaged the city's image and made people question whether they, too, might get sued by officers responding to 911 calls.

Eichhorn got what she deserved, said Richard Cosmillo, the boy's grandfather and guardian.

If she hadn't filed suit, he said Tuesday evening, "she wouldn't have been fired, would she?"

Police spokesman Lt. Dennis Stewart would not comment.

Eichhorn, 36, of Chuluota, a 12-year department veteran, was not available for comment.

Joey Cosmillo fell into his backyard pool Jan. 9. When his mother found the 1-year-old a few minutes later, he was unconscious and not breathing. She hauled him out, carried him inside and called 911. She told the 911 operator she thought her son was dead.

Eichhorn was the third rescuer at the house. She slipped and fell in a puddle of water in the hallway, near where officers were performing CPR.

She didn't see the water, she told police Lt. Ralph Mellon, who conducted an internal police investigation into the matter. She only realized the floor was wet, she told him, because when she fell and wound up on the seat of her pants, they got wet.

Later that day, she had a co-worker drive her to an emergency outpatient clinic. Doctors concluded she had broken a kneecap.

The city or its insurer covered all her medical bills, and although she missed two months of work, she didn't lose a single day's pay, according to the internal investigation.

Eichhorn sued because she was afraid she might wind up disabled, the city's insurer might reject her claims or that she would become a burden to her family, she told the department.

She and her attorney, David Heil, had tried for months to get money from the Cosmillos, but the family had ignored her claim, so on Oct. 1 she filed suit in state circuit court in Sanford, accusing the family of negligence.

The Orlando Sentinel published an article Oct. 10, and the outcry was immediate. The police department and city offices were inundated during the next several days with calls and e-mail from people outraged by the suit.

Judi Romboli, executive assistant to Casselberry's city manager, told Mellon that in her 14 years on the job, she had never had to deal with anything like it.

"No, nothing. This was the worst," she said.

Eichhorn was in tears and went home sick the day the article appeared, according to the investigative report. She stayed home the next day.

That same day, Pavlis placed her on a paid leave of absence and called for the internal investigation. Mellon completed it three weeks ago, concluding Eichhorn had violated several department policies, including damaging the department's image and filing suit without giving the police chief advance written notice.

On Nov. 19, Pavlis took away her badge and weapon, telling her he intended to fire her. She asked for a review and got it, but it did no good. On Tuesday, Pavlis fired her.

Eichhorn has 10 days to appeal.

Joey Cosmillo, now 2, suffered severe brain damage that day in the pool. He now lives in a home for profoundly handicapped children, unable to breathe or swallow on his own. His grandfather is hoping for a miracle.

"I don't want my Joey to live the way he's living for the rest of his life," he said. "I need my Joey to live and breathe the way other kids do."

Copyright 2007 Orlando Sentinel

This chick was a sorry-ass excuse for a cop. She made everyone with a badge look like a POS. F*ck her. Good riddance!
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Always check your child's homework!!!!!

H/T: Theo Spark

Just because...

Because men and women stand on that wall every night to keep evil from visiting us.

Many have given the last full measure of devotion...



Are you worthy of their sacrifice?

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1,000,000 sorties since 9/11!

Air Mobility Command passed a major milestone Nov. 19, when an AMC aircraft flew the command's one millionth sortie since September 11, 2001.

The landmark flight was a C-17 mission flown to Manas Air Base, Kyrgyzstan. The crew was from the 62nd Airlift Wing's 10th Airlift Squadron, McChord AFB, Wash.

"AMC is firmly in the fight," said Gen. Arthur Lichte, AMC commander. "Whether it's flying airlift, tanker or aeromedical missions in and out of combat zones in Iraq and Afghanistan, humanitarian relief missions to hurricane and earthquake ravaged areas, or supporting UN peacekeeping missions as it did recently in Darfur, AMC is there."

"This milestone is a tribute to the men and women who fly, maintain, support and control these aircraft. The excellence they demonstrate every day will no doubt continue for the next million missions, wherever they may be," said Lichte.

A sortie is defined as a single takeoff and landing. The milestone includes all operational missions, training missions and commercial contract missions flown by the command.

Other mobility facts:

- About every 90 seconds a mobility aircraft lifts off somewhere in the world.

- Since Sept. 11, 2001, AMC tankers have passed nearly 1.2 billion gallons of fuel to U.S. and allied aircraft.

- AMC airlift is keeping about 12,000 people and almost 5,000 trucks off Iraqi roads each month, helping to defeat the enemy's IED strategy.

- AMC aircraft are responsible for transporting the nation's senior leaders, including the president.

- AMC is rushing about 12 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles to Iraq and Afghanistan every day. The command has delivered more than 1,000 MRAPs.

- AMC aeromedical crews provide timely airlift and medical care to their fellow warriors, rapidly moving injured service members from the battlefield to the U.S.

Amazing!

And I (along with my squadron-mates) flew a bunch of those...

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Hooyah! Murph

The President's Thanksgiving Address

The following is a transcript of President Bush's radio address:

PRESIDENT BUSH: Good morning. This week our Nation celebrated Thanksgiving. American families and friends gathered together to express gratitude for all that we have been given. We give thanks for the freedoms we enjoy. We give thanks for the loved ones who enrich our lives. And we give thanks for the many gifts that come from this prosperous land. Thanksgiving is a time when we acknowledge that all of these things, and life itself, come not from the hand of man, but from Almighty God.

Earlier this week, I visited Berkeley Plantation in Virginia. The story of this historic setting goes back nearly four centuries to another day of thanks. In 1619, a band of 38 settlers departed Bristol, England for Berkeley. At the end of their long voyage, the men reviewed their orders from home. The orders said, quote, "The day of our ship's arrival ... shall be yearly and perpetually kept holy as a day of Thanksgiving to Almighty God." In response, the men fell to their knees in prayer. And with this humble act of faith, the settlers celebrated their first Thanksgiving in the New World.

Berkeley's settlers remind us that giving thanks has been an American tradition from the beginning. At this time of year, we also remember the Pilgrims at Plymouth, who gave thanks after their first harvest in New England. We remember George Washington, who led his men in thanksgiving during the American Revolution. We remember Abraham Lincoln, who revived the Thanksgiving tradition in the midst of a terrible civil war.

Throughout our history, Americans have always taken time to give thanks for all those whose sacrifices protect and strengthen our Nation. We continue that tradition today — and we give thanks for a new generation of patriots who are defending our liberty around the world. We are grateful to all our men and women in uniform who are spending this holiday weekend far from their families. We keep them in our thoughts and prayers. And we especially remember those who have given their lives in our Nation's defense.

One of these brave Americans was Lieutenant Michael Murphy. In June 2005, this officer gave his life in defense of his fellow Navy SEALs. Michael was conducting surveillance on a mountain ridge in Afghanistan, when his four-man SEAL team was surrounded by a much larger enemy force. Their only escape was down the side of the mountain. The SEALs launched a valiant counterattack while cascading from cliff to cliff. But as the enemy closed in, Michael recognized that the survival of his men depended on calling back to base for reinforcements.

With complete disregard for his own life, Michael Murphy moved into a clearing where he could get a signal. As he made the call, Michael fell under heavy fire. Though severely wounded, he said "thank you" before signing off, and returned to the fight. His heroism cost him his life — and earned him our Nation's highest decoration for valor, the Medal of Honor. This weekend, we give thanks for the blessings of young Americans like Lieutenant Michael Murphy, who risk their own lives to keep us safe.

We're also blessed by the many other Americans who serve a cause larger than themselves. Each day our Nation's police and firefighters and emergency responders and faith-based and community volunteers dedicate their time to serving others. While we were enjoying our Thanksgiving turkeys, tens of thousands of these men and women were on the job — keeping their fellow citizens safe and bringing hope and compassion to our brothers and sisters in need. And their sacrifice reminds us that the true strength of our Nation is the goodness and decency of our people.

Since America's first Thanksgiving, we have changed in many ways. Our population has grown. Our people have prospered. And we have become a great beacon of hope and freedom for millions around the world. Despite these changes, the source of all our blessings remains the same. We are grateful to the Author of Life who blessed our Nation's first days, who strengthened America in times of trial and war, and who watches over us today.

Thank you for listening.

High Larry Ass!

Nice...

RIP...

California Highway Patrol Officer John Miller (ID# 18414) was killed on 11-16-07 in a traffic collision, while attempting to locate a DUI driver.

Officer Miller was driving south on North Livermore Avenue about a mile north of Interstate 580 when he lost control of his patrol car around a sharp curve and struck a tree.

Officers from the Livermore Police Department located the drunken driving suspect, on eastbound I-580 near Greenville Road, and he was arrested by the California Highway Patrol on suspicion of DUI, evading police, and driving without a license.

Officer Miller had served with the California Highway Patrol for one year and was assigned to the Dublin Stations. He is survived by his wife and two children.

Freedom isn't free...

Enough Said.

Welcome Home!

Story Here

He sure is a spaz...

But I like his work!

Take the chance...

Veteran's Day 2007

To all fellow Americans that are serving or have ever served:

Thank You.

Happy Birthday! Devil-Dogs!

Today is the 232nd birthday of the United States Marine Corps.

Semper Fidelis to all of my brothers.



Birthday Presentation

"The deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and his rifle."
— U.S. Army Gen. John J. "Black Jack" Pershing

"Angels of Death"
— nickname given U.S. Marines by Iraqi soldiers in Gulf War I

"Panic sweeps my men when they are facing the American Marines."
— captured North Korean major during the Korean War

"The safest place in Korea was right behind a platoon of Marines. Lord, how they could fight!"
— U.S. Army Major Frank Lowe

"The American Marine division has the highest combat effectiveness in the American armed forces. It seems not enough for our four divisions to surround and annihilate its two regiments. You should have one or two more divisions as a reserve force."
— Mao Tse-Tung's orders to the commander of the Chinese 9th Army Group

"U.S. Marines have the swagger, confidence, and hardness that must have been in Stonewall Jackson's Army of the Shenandoah."
— A British military observer's report, August 1950

"Marines have it [pride] and benefit from it. They are tough, cocky, sure of themselves and their buddies. They can fight, and they know it."
— U.S. Army General Mark Clark

"Marines I see as two breeds, Rottweilers or Dobermans, because Marines come in two varieties, big and mean, or skinny and mean. They're aggressive on the attack and tenacious on defense. They've got really short hair and they always go for the throat."
— Rear Admiral J.R. Stark, U.S. Navy, 1995

"The U.S. Marine Corps has, once again, proven itself to be the best fighting force in the history of mankind. The warrior ethic of the Marines is paralleled only by Special Operations forces, and they manage to embed that spirit into 175,000 troops."
— Commander Mark Divine, U.S. Navy SEALs, 2005

"... Oversexed, underpaid, teenaged killers [some sources say 'babyfaced killers']."
— First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt

"The Marines I have seen around the world have the cleanest bodies, the filthiest minds, the highest morale, and the lowest morals of any group of animals I have ever seen. Thank God for the United States Marine Corps!"
— First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt

"Thank God for the United States Marines. At least they still turn out men. Crazy ones and wild to be sure. Mad as March hares each and every one of them, but true men for all of that, and dashing men to boot."
— Honolulu Advertiser, 1971.

Very Cool...

A prediction.

Military action will be taken against Iran, by the end of next year.

SWEET!

Just because...

Out-Freaking-Standing!

The 1st Cav putting some Hell fire down on Haji.

Hooah!!!

This is horrible.

Please help the Johnson's if you can. I can't imagine how terrible it'd be to lose all three of your children.

Car crash claims third child of wounded Iraq veteran

Associated Press

DALLAS — A wounded Iraq veteran and his wife have lost a third child from injuries the boy suffered in a car accident on the way to visit his father in the hospital.

Three weeks after his siblings died in an Oct. 13 accident on the gusty West Texas plains, 9-year-old Tyler Johnson died Saturday at Children's Medical Center Dallas.

Army Spc. John Austin Johnson was waiting for his wife, Lisa, and their three kids to visit him at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio when the deadly crash occurred on Interstate 10 about 12 miles east of Ozona.

Lisa Johnson overcorrected the steering in her sport utility vehicle after encountering a blast of wind on the drive from El Paso, causing the car to roll at least four times, officials have said.

The couple's youngest children, 2-year-old Logan and 5-year-old Ashley, died at the scene. Tyler Johnson suffered massive head injuries.

Lisa Johnson was driving at the speed limit, traffic investigators have said, but they blamed the accident on a combination of high speed, drowsiness and powerful winds.

The three children were in the back seat. Logan was in a child seat, but the other two children were not wearing seatbelts.

Sgt. 1st Class Eugene Schmidt, a family spokesman, said Tyler survived longer than expected.

The Johnsons were too upset to talk publicly, but Schmidt said they're coping the best they can.

"I think the good thing is they knew it (Tyler's death) was coming," Schmidt said. "They had time to prepare for it this time."

Johnson, who is stationed at Fort Bliss, has survived five brushes with improvised explosive device blasts during two years in Iraq, Schmidt said last month. The latest left him with a traumatic brain injury, and he speaks with a severe stutter.

Visitation for Tyler is set for Wednesday and a funeral for Thursday at Roller-Ballard Funeral Home in Benton, Ark., the family's hometown.

Numerous donations have helped the family deal with immediate expenses.

The Professional Golfers' Association raised $95,000 to pay for a new car and other expenses.

American Airlines donated plane tickets for family members to travel to the children's funerals last month and the pending funeral this week.

Schmidt said the Johnsons plan to take a month off to rest and decide what to do next.

"Right now, they've kind of had a mission, so to speak going to hospital every day, checking on their son, burying two others," he said. "When this calms down, they're going to realize it's just them two."

You can donate to the family through any Bank of America branch. The account is the “Ashley and Logan Johnson Memorial Fund.” Tell the bank associate that the account is domiciled in Texas.
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Driving while Black.

A great column (as usual) by Thomas Sowell.

I Drive While Black
Quit the automatic belligerence.

By Thomas Sowell

Twice within the past few years, I have been pulled over by the police for driving at night without my headlights on. My car is supposed to turn on the headlights automatically when the light outside is below a certain level, but sometimes I accidentally brush against the controls and inadvertently switch them to manual.

Both times I thanked the policeman because he may well have saved my life. Neither time did I get a ticket or even a warning. In each case, the policeman was white.

Recently a well-known black journalist told me of a very different experience. He happened to be riding along in a police car driven by a white policeman. Ahead of them was a car driving at night with no headlights on and, in the dark, it was impossible to see who was driving it.

When the policeman pulled the car over, a black driver got out and, when the policeman told him that he was driving without his lights on, the driver said, “You only pulled me over because I am black!”

This was said even though he saw the black man who was with the policeman. The driver got a ticket.

Later, when the journalist asked the cop how often he got such responses from black drivers, the reply was “About 80 percent of the time.”

When the same journalist asked the same question of black cops, the answer was about 30 percent of the time — lower, but still an amazing percentage under the circumstances.

Various black “leaders” and supposed friends of blacks have in recent years been pushing the idea that “driving while black” is enough to get the cops to pull you over for one flimsy reason or another.

Heather Mac Donald of the Manhattan Institute wrote a book titled Are Cops Racist? which examined the empirical evidence behind similar claims.

The evidence did not support the claims that had been widely publicized in the media. But her study was largely ignored by the media. Maybe it would have spoiled their stories.

Even before reading Heather Mac Donald’s book, I found it hard to accept the sweeping claims about the dangers of “driving while black.”

Looking back over a long life, I could think of a number of times that I had been pulled over by the police in a number of states, without any of the things happening that are supposed to happen when you are “driving while black.”

Nor could I recall any member of my family who had told me of any such experiences with the police. It was hard to believe that we had all just led charmed lives all these years.

Only about half the times that I was pulled over did I end up being given a ticket. Once a policeman who pulled me over and asked for my driver’s license said wearily, “Mr. Sowell, would you mind paying some attention to these stop signs, so that I don’t have to write you a ticket?”

Recently I pulled off to the side of a highway to take a picture of the beautiful bay below, in Pacifica, California. After I had finished and was starting to pack up my equipment, a police car pulled off to the side of the highway behind me.

“What’s going on here?” the policeman asked.

“Photography,” I said.

“You are not allowed to park here,” he said. “It’s dangerous.”

“All right,” I said, “I am packing to leave right now.”

“Incidentally,” he said as he turned to get back in his car, “You can get a better view of the bay from up on Roberts Road.”

I then drove up on Roberts Road and, sure enough, got a better view of the bay. And I didn’t get a ticket or a warning.

In a world where young blacks, especially, are bombarded with claims that they are being unfairly targeted by police, and where a general attitude of belligerence is being promoted literally in word and song, it is hard not to wonder whether some people’s responses to policemen do not have something to do with the policemen’s responses to them.

Neither the police nor people in any other occupation always do what is right but automatic belligerence is not the answer.

Link

Advice we could all use...

Semper Fidelis Cpl. Jernigan!

To Hell and Back With a Smile

By Michael Jernigan

Let me set a scene for you. The time is the middle of the afternoon and the place is Falluja, Iraq, in April of 2004. I am laying face down in a shallow irrigation ditch on the side of a dirt road. There is a lot of noise. The kind that can only be known in war. It is multiple medium-weight machine guns raining the terror of lead. I am looking around and seeing my friends in the same predicament. I also see dirt popping up inches from my face and body. This does not come from just anywhere. The dirt is flying into the air because there are 7.62-millimeter bullets landing everywhere. Was I scared? You bet your sweet life I was. This is when I realized that I was going to die. Not when I was old or even back home in St. Petersburg. I was going to die on a dirt road in a place that if it is not hell they share the same zip code. There was nothing I could do but wait. I lit a cigarette and threw my pack of Newports behind me so my buddy Murph-dog could enjoy his last smoke, too.

Fast forward to October of 2007, I sit in the living room of my fifth floor apartment in Alexandria, Va. I am watching the television. I can not see the screen. Which is a shame because it is a flat panel, flat screen, high definition television. I have always enjoyed the newest in technology and do not see why I should stop now. I am waiting for my girlfriend to call after she puts her son to bed. I can not stop laughing because the program I am watching is just that funny. How did I get here and why am I so content with how everything worked out?

I do not let the anger and depression rule my life. I am in control, at least that is what I tell myself. It is not easy and I falter from time to time. Don’t you? We all do — the difference is how we deal with it. I count my blessings that I am here and not buried next to so many of my friends who are not as fortunate as me. I went to hell and back! Guess what, America? I smell like roses most of the time. There are still times when I can stink up a room with an off-color comment or a bad mood. Please do not misunderstand; I know I am human and capable of making mistakes, which I do more than I would care to admit. I also know from experience that I can be my worst adversary. I try my hardest to make the good days last and the bad ones pass. We all have problems and a lot of us let them control our lives. Take it from me, this is not the way to live.

I have had combat stress. With that comes the demons in the night. The ones that rob you of your sleep and eventually your sanity. There were enormous amounts of pain and some behavior that I am not proud of. I had a brain injury to the front temporal lobes and had both eyes violently ripped from my face. This is the part of your brain that is your social filter. I do not think I have to connect the dots — for a while I was totally out of control. But I have kept my head above the water and not drowned.

My family is now and has always been my life preserver. My mother is the one who is responsible for helping me learn how to behave in society again. I do this by capitalizing on those opportunities that bring me joy. I spend weekends in Richmond, going to little league baseball games. I have gotten involved with the guide dog school that gave me my dog, Brittani. I help with charity fund raising. I go to talk with groups about how to survive turmoil and overcome the obstacles that can get our life off track. I travel when the time permits it. Most of all I spend time with those who love me and have been by my side through the whole affair.

When I went to Iraq I had a smile on my face. I believed in the war. I thought that we could do some good. I wanted to help the Iraqis have the same freedoms we take for granted every day. I enjoyed my time in the gun club we call the Marine Corps. How could I not? That is my family background. I am a third generation marine. Shooting machine guns and blowing stuff up was enjoyable at the time. I did not know then the horrors of combat. I had an incredibly catastrophic thing happen to me. That is what I was told by someone in passing.

I do not agree. I was given a second chance at life.

We are not all so lucky. I attended the funeral of the Navy corpsman who saved my life. He died on his third combat tour in Iraq. The times have not always been happy-go-lucky. There were a lot of hours in surgery and in rehabilitation facilities. I can stand tall today and wear a smile on my face that is a country mile wide. I can do that because my family loves me. God blessed me with more days in this world. I have a girlfriend who is everything that I was so certain that I would never find. I beg of you, when it gets too deep and you feel like that it will never get better, smile. Sometimes it is all that we have to fight off the blues and get back on our horse and push through.

When we think we've got it bad, think of Michael Jernigan...

Michael Jernigan

Corporal, USMC

Hometown: St. Petersburg, FL (currently lives in Arlington, VA)

Age: 28

Date of Injury: 8/22/2004

Hospital: National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, MA

Unit: Weapons Platoon, Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines

Date deployed to Iraq: March 2nd, 2004

Location of Injury: Outskirts of Mahmudiyah (between Baghdad and Kuwait)

List of Injuries: Loss of both eyes (resulting in blindness), loss of frontal cranium (forehead area - ear-to-ear, eyebrow to top of head), loss of bone structure that supports the brain (brain now sits on titanium mesh), fractured left cheek bone (titanium plate to stabilize), frontal lobe bruising, severed left femoral artery, fractured left patella (kneecap), Right hand damage (little finger mostly severed and reattached, loss of knuckles (between hand and fingers, the hand was crushed from the explosion)

That's Hot!

Just another day in Iraq...

Something you won't see in the MSM...

Iraqi Army at Besmaya Installation Support San Diego Fire Victims

By U.S. Army Sgt 1st Class Charlene Sipperly
Multi-National Security Transition Command – Iraq Public Affairs

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Members of the Iraqi Army in Besmaya collected a donation for the San Diego, Calif., fire victims Thursday night at the Besmaya Range Complex in a moving ceremony to support Besmaya's San Diego residents.

Iraqi Army Col. Abbass, the commander of the complex, presented a gift of $1,000 to U.S. Army Col. Darel Maxfield, Besmaya Range Complex officer in charge, Multi-National Security Transition Command Iraq, to send to the fire victims in California.

The money was collected from Iraqi officers and enlisted soldiers in Besmaya. In a speech given during the presentation, Col. Abbass stated that he and the Iraqi soldiers were connected with the American people in many ways, and they will not forget the help that the American government has given the Iraqi people. Abbass was honored to participate by sending a simple fund of $1,000 to the American people in San Diego, to lower the suffering felt by the tragedy.

Night of the Living Democrat

Classic!

Its the "Rich White Guys" fault!

Apparently, you have to be a buffoon to be a Liberal...



These guys are really bright...
.

Hooyah Murph!

Video from the Medal of Honor ceremony for Lt. Michael P. Murphy USN, today at the White House.



This country owes a debt to Lt. Murphy that can never be repaid.

Remember Him.
.

Awesome!

John McCain fronts off Shillary Clinton.





Priceless!
.

Reach out and touch...

Make this world a better place, if you can...

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The end of the World

An oldie but a funny.

Ofc. Emily Jewett Morgenroth #322

Emily J. Morgenroth
Date of Birth: December 5, 1970
Date Appointed: January 20, 1996
End of Watch: October 17, 1997

10 years ago today, Sacramento Police Officer Emily J. Morgenroth was killed in the line of duty. She was 26 years old.

Emily and I were best friends in the academy. She was a phenomenal person and a great cop. She didn't get nearly enough time on this Earth to do the great things that she would have done, but she made a pretty big impact during her short stay here.

Her death had a profound impact on me.

I remember that night like it was yesterday. My good friend Mike called me to give me the news and I immediately went to the hospital, but she was already gone. I got to spend a few minutes with her, which I'm very thankful for.

It's been 10 years and I still miss her beyond words.

Reverberating Loss of a Promising Cop
by Diana Griego Erwin

Day in and day out, it is easy to forget that police work is so fraught with danger. All over the city, patrol officers and their sergeants go about the business of keeping the rest of us safe, and much of what they get in return amounts to lip and attitude.

With the proliferation of guns on the streets and the continuing breakdown of civil accord, it's amazing police officers aren't hurt more often. And yet there's still a painful, disbelieving shock when an officer in your own town is killed in the line of duty. It is worse yet that Officer Emily Morgenroth was so young.

I have met many of our town's finest, but I did not know Morgenroth, who died in an alcohol-related collision Friday at age 26. And yet there is a profound respect in the air when those who knew her speak her name. Respect begets respect.

"She loved people. She knew how to treat them," said a homeless man who claimed to run into her frequently.

Morgenroth's friends and colleagues at the William J. Kinney police substation in North Sacramento were too broken up to share their thoughts Monday, but Lt. Tom Sweeney said the city has lost a gem.

"She cared about other people and gave them her concern and time even when it might have seemed inconvenient to someone else," he said.

Recently, for example, she shooed a colleague home when an arrest at the end of his shift meant he'd do overtime handling the booking. She did it for him.

In fact, she was always encouraging others to spend more time with friends and family, Sweeney said. "She knew what was important."

Her gift of "connecting" with others made her a superior officer. "People talked to her; they trusted her because she really listened to them. She didn't trivialize their problems," Sweeney said. "The citizens of Sacramento have truly lost an officer who was there for them."

Sacramento Police Chief Arturo Venegas Jr. said her father told him Morgenroth died doing what she really loved.

"They felt really at peace that she was fulfilling her dreams," Venegas said. "You know, sometimes people say, 'Oh, this wouldn't have happened if she hadn't been an officer,' but that is not the case here. She hadn't achieved all her dreams, but she was doing what she loved."

In many ways, Morgenroth represented the modern officer Venegas has often described as the future of police departments: professionals who bring a diversity of life experiences and skills to a career that, these days, calls for more brains than brawn.

She joined the Sacramento police force with her sights set on a FBI career, but some think she decided that maybe local policing suited her best. She spoke Japanese and German, held a political science degree from UCLA and taught English in Japan for two years before returning home to Northern California. Two years ago, she graduated from the police academy; she's worked the 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. graveyard shift in North Sacramento since January. Her boyfriend was a fellow officer.

Morgenroth was northbound on Marysville Boulevard on Friday night when her police cruiser broadsided a truck making a left turn into a liquor store parking lot. The driver of the pickup, whose blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit, has been charged with drunken driving; vehicular manslaughter charges could be added. The California Highway Patrol is investigating.

Meanwhile, flowers commemorating the fallen officer have appeared at the base of the flag pole outside the police substation and at the crash site.

Flowers at Phone Pole The collision occurred near Bill's Liquor at the corner of Marysville and Del Paso boulevards where a steady stream of passersby paused Monday to look at colorful bouquets left on a telephone pole heavily splintered in the crash.

A woman stopped with two small children to explain, in Spanish, the tragedy that had occurred there. While not absolutely sure, she said she believed Morgenroth was the officer who once helped calm the family when her nephew was hit by a car.

Ten minutes later, a man with torn pants and a shirt stained with grease bowed his head as if praying.

Indeed, he was.

"I just think we don't appreciate how the police risk their lives and how dangerous it is, 'tis all," said Edward Tooley, an unemployed mechanic. "From what I've read, the officer was very young. My prayers to her family."

Emily's ODMP Memorial Page

The Monument

I never dreamed it would be me
My name for all eternity
Recorded here at this hallowed place
Alas, my name, no more my face

"In the line of duty" I hear them say
My family now the price will pay
My folded flag stained with their tears
We only had those few short years

The badge no longer on my chest
I sleep now in eternal rest
My sword I pass to those behind
And pray they keep this thought in mind

I never dreamed it would be me
And with heavy heart and bended knee
I ask for here and all the past
Dear God, let my name be the last

Det. George Hanh
LAPD (Ret.)

I miss you Em...

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Gen. Peter Pace - Man of Honor

Old Sarge's Blog

Nothing else need be said...

I'm on the right side of History, are you?

____________________________________________

Lt. Michael P. Murphy, USN

Lt. Murphy will receive the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) on 10-22-07, at the White House.

Lt. Murphy joins SFC Paul Smith and LCpl. Jason Dunham as the only MOH awardee's from OEF/OIF.

Lt. Murphy was the leader of the SEAL element that was written about in "Lone Survivor" by Marcus Luttrell.

Go. Read. It.

Hooyah! Lt. Murphy

First Navy MoH since Vietnam to go to SEAL

By Gidget Fuentes - Staff writer
Posted : Sunday Oct 14, 2007 9:41:57 EDT

SAN DIEGO — Two years after his death in a harrowing firefight on a mountaintop in Afghanistan, Lt. Michael P. Murphy, a SEAL from Patchogue, N.Y., will receive the nation’s highest combat honor, Navy officials said.

A Navy spokeswoman confirmed Oct. 11 the decision by President Bush approving the posthumous award of the Medal of Honor, the first for the Navy for the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Murphy, 29, was leading a four-man reconnaissance and surveillance team during Operation Red Wing in Afghanistan’s rugged Hindu Kush mountains June 28, 2005, when the team was spotted by Taliban fighters. During the intense battle that followed, Murphy and two of his men — Gunner’s Mate 2nd Class (SEAL) Danny Dietz and Sonar Technician (Surface) 2nd Class (SEAL) Matthew Axelson — were killed. A fourth man, then-Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class (SEAL) Marcus Luttrell, was seriously wounded and knocked unconscious, but managed to escape. Luttrell was rescued days later.

Murphy was killed while phoning in for reinforcements. The tragedy continued when enemy fighters shot down one of the transport helicopters carrying the rescue force, killing eight more SEALs and eight Special Forces operators. The 11 SEALs killed marked the largest single-day loss of life for the tight-knit community.

Bush will present the Medal of Honor to Murphy’s parents, Daniel and Maureen, and his brother, John, on Oct. 22 at a 2:30 p.m. ceremony in the White House.

“We’re thrilled with the president’s announcement, and more importantly that there’s now a public recognition of what Mike’s family and friends have known about him from the very beginning,” Daniel Murphy said Oct. 11 by telephone from New York.

In addition to the Oval Office ceremony, the fallen SEAL will be honored at two other Washington events: the inclusion of his name on a wall at the Pentagon’s Hall of Heroes at 11 a.m. Oct. 23, and the presentation of the Medal of Honor flag at the Navy Memorial at 6 p.m. Oct. 23. Additional ceremonies are planned next month at Calverton National Cemetery in eastern Long Island, where Murphy is buried, and on his birthday next year at the Patchogue post office that bears his name, his family said.

When he deployed overseas, Murphy carried a patch from New York Fire Department’s Engine Company 53 and Ladder Company 43, in Manhattan’s El Barrio neighborhood, “as a symbol of why he was there and what he was doing,” Daniel Murphy said.

“Michael felt that he was doing something important ... to root out, capture and kill those who were responsible for 9/11,” he added. “Michael understood the importance of his work.”

In mourning their son, the Murphy family has also celebrated his life. “What a man he grew up to be,” said Maureen Murphy, who called him “an American hero.”

To the Murphy family, the announcement of the Medal of Honor isn’t just a personal recognition. “It’s more than just about Michael,” his father said. “It’s about Michael and his team. Michael, first and foremost, was a team player.”

“Eleven SEALs who fought, died and sacrificed for one another,” he added. “There’s no higher calling.”
Life and death on Murphy’s ridge

The team was taking heavy fire in the close-quarters battle as Taliban fighters continued to close in, firing weapons and rocket-propelled grenades. At one point, Murphy took his mobile phone and “walked to open ground. He walked until he was more or less in the center, gunfire all around him, and he sat on a small rock and began punching in the numbers to HQ,” according to Luttrell, the surviving SEAL, who wrote a book called “Lone Survivor.”

“I could hear him talking,” Luttrell wrote. “My men are taking heavy fire ... we’re getting picked apart. My guys are dying out here ... we need help.

“And right then Mikey took a bullet straight in the back. I saw the blood spurt from his chest. He slumped forward, dropping his phone and his rifle. But then he braced himself, grabbed them both, sat upright again, and once more put the phone to his ear.”

Then, Luttrell heard Murphy say, “Roger that, sir. Thank you.” The lieutenant continued to train fire on the enemy fighters.

“Only I knew what Mikey had done. He’d understood we had only one realistic chance, and that was to call in help,” Luttrell wrote. “Knowing the risk, understanding the danger, in the full knowledge the phone call could cost him his life, Lieutenant Michael Patrick Murphy, son of Maureen, fiancé of the beautiful Heather, walked out into the firestorm.

“His objective was clear: to make one last valiant attempt to save his two teammates.”

Not long after the call, Murphy was shot again, screaming for Luttrell to help him, but Luttrell, also hit and wounded, couldn’t reach him. “There was nothing I could do except die with him,” he wrote.

Murphy’s actions didn’t surprise those who knew him.

That, despite his wounds, he made that call “and at the end of the call to say, ‘Thank you,’ and hang up, and continue the fight ... really exemplifies the type of person that he was,” said Sean, a lieutenant commander who was the naval special warfare task unit leader with SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 1, a Pearl Harbor, Hawaii-based unit. Naval Special Warfare Command asked to withhold his full name.

“Murph,” as others called him, was “a warrior and [was devoted] to his men,” Sean said. The Medal of Honor “draws attention to the true heroism and selfless sacrifice of all the guys that day,” he added. “It’s a testament to all 19 who gave their lives that day.”
A well-kept secret

In the two years since, the events on that Afghan mountain have stirred much speculation on how the team members would be recognized. “They knew what they were dying for, they believed in what they were doing and they gave their last full measure,” then-Rear Adm. Joe Maguire said during a June 28, 2006, ceremony dedicating a memorial tree and plaque outside Naval Special Warfare Command headquarters in Coronado, Calif.

The other three SEALs in Murphy’s team have received the Navy Cross.

On Aug. 27, the Murphy family received a call from the White House chief of military affairs telling them that President Bush approved the award. “They asked us if we could please keep the information confidential” until the Navy’s announcement, Daniel Murphy said.

Talk about pressure. “Obviously, you want to get on top of a building and scream out,” he said.

But the Murphys agreed, and they kept it secret.

“You wanted to tell everybody, but you really couldn’t,” said Maureen Murphy.

“I was thrilled, and I was like, oh my God. It’s like a rollercoaster ride,” she said. “You are so happy that the nation recognizes what you already know about your son — handsome and the brave actions and everything — then there’s the other part. ... I wish he could walk up there and receive that. It’s bittersweet.”

Family and colleagues describe Murphy as a likeable leader, witty, sincere, caring, honest humble, selfless. He didn’t live for the spotlight, they say, and he’d probably prefer to deflect the attention over his combat actions.

“He was a great little boy. He was a very wonderful teenager. He always rolled up his sleeves to help people,” his mother said. “In every picture we have,” she noted, “he was always in the background.”
SEALs honor their own

This will mark the first time a Navy person has received the Medal of Honor in 35 years, and the fourth time a SEAL has received the award. It also marks the third awarding of the Medal of Honor for combat heroism in Iraq or Afghanistan — the other two were awarded posthumously to Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul Smith and Marine Cpl. Jason Dunham.

Top Navy SEALs paid tribute to the president’s decision.

“I am grateful Lt. Murphy will receive the Medal of Honor in recognition and tribute for his heroism and sacrifices,” Adm. Eric Olson, who commands U.S. Special Operations Command in Tampa, Fla., said in a statement. “His selfless actions exemplify the characteristics and values of special operations forces.”

Murphy “was a valued teammate, professional warrior and fearless leader. We are humbled by his courageous and selfless actions, and this award is a testament to the man he was,” said Rear Adm. Joe Kernan, head of Naval Special Warfare Command, in a statement. “Mike believed deeply in his country, and he honorably lived the ethos that he shared with his fellow SEALs.

“The Medal of Honor will ensure that his sacrifice — for freedom, for his teammates and for his fellow Americans — will never be forgotten,” Kernan added. “He will inspire our Naval Special Warfare community for years to come.”

Sean, the task unit leader, recalled that Murphy “is one of those few leaders who was truly able to command the respect of his men, while at the same time knowing them at a personal level. They trusted him, and they felt confident in his abilities.

“It just exemplified the type of people that we have in the community. The events of that day were extraordinary,” he said.

Murphy’s actions that day — “exposing himself the way he did, way into a lengthy gunfight and already severely wounded” — didn’t surprise the officer.

Murphy, he added, “would just say he was doing his job.”

========================================
Murphy’s official Navy biography

Lt. Michael P. Murphy, fondly referred to by friends and family as “Murph,” was born May 7, 1976 in Smithtown, N.Y. and grew up in the New York City commuter town of Patchogue, N.Y. on Long Island.

Murphy grew up active in sports and attended Patchogue’s Saxton Middle School. In high school, Murphy took a summer lifeguard job at the Brookhaven town beach in Lake Ronkonkoma — a job he returned to each summer through his college years. Murphy graduated from Patchogue-Medford High School in 1994.

Murphy attended Penn State University, where he was an exceptional all-around athlete and student, excelling at ice hockey and graduating with honors. He was an avid reader; his reading tastes ranged from the Greek historian Herodotus to Tolstoy’s “War and Peace.” Murphy’s favorite book was Steven Pressfield’s “Gates of Fire,” about the Spartan stand at Thermopylae. In 1998, he graduated with a pair of Bachelor of Arts degrees from Penn State — in political science and psychology.

Following graduation, he was accepted to several law schools, but instead he changed course. Slightly built at 5 feet 10 inches, Murphy decided to attend SEAL mentoring sessions at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point with his sights on becoming a U.S. Navy SEAL. Murphy accepted an appointment to the Navy’s Officer Candidate School at Pensacola, Fla., in September, 2000.

Murphy was commissioned as an ensign in the Navy on Dec. 13, 2000, and began Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training in Coronado, Calif. in January 2001, graduating with Class 236. BUD/S is a six-month training course and the first step to becoming a Navy SEAL.

Upon graduation from BUD/S, he attended the Army Jump School, SEAL Qualification Training and SEAL Delivery Vehicle (SDV) school. Lt. Murphy earned his SEAL Trident and checked on board SDV Team ONE (SDVT-1) in Pearl Harbor, HI in July of 2002. In October of 2002, he deployed with Foxtrot Platoon to Jordan as the liaison officer for Exercise Early Victor.

Following his tour with SDVT-1, Lt. Murphy was assigned to Special Operations Central Command in Florida and deployed to Qatar in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. After returning from Qatar, Lt. Murphy was deployed to the Horn of Africa, Djibouti, to assist in the operational planning of future SDV missions.

In early 2005, Murphy was assigned to SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team ONE as assistant officer in charge of ALFA Platoon and deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

On June 28, 2005, Lt. Murphy was the officer-in-charge of a four-man SEAL element in support of Operation Red Wing tasked with finding key anti-coalition militia commander near Asadabad, Afghanistan. Shortly after inserting into the objective area, the SEALs were spotted by three goat herders who were initially detained and then released. It is believed the goat herders immediately reported the SEALs’ presence to Taliban fighters.

A fierce gun battle ensued on the steep face of the mountain between the SEALs and a much larger enemy force. Despite the intensity of the firefight and suffering grave gunshot wounds himself, Murphy is credited with risking his own life to save the lives of his teammates. Murphy, intent on making contact with headquarters, but realizing this would be impossible in the extreme terrain where they were fighting, unhesitatingly and with completed disregard for his own life moved into the open, where he could gain a better position to transmit a call to get help for his men.

Moving away from the protective mountain rocks, he knowingly exposed himself to increased enemy gunfire. This deliberate and heroic act deprived him of cover and made him a target for the enemy. While continuing to be fired upon, Murphy made contact with the SOF Quick Reaction Force at Bagram Air Base and requested assistance. He calmly provided his unit’s location and the size of the enemy force while requesting immediate support for his team. At one point, he was shot in the back causing him to drop the transmitter. Murphy picked it back up, completed the call and continued firing at the enemy who was closing in. Severely wounded, Lt. Murphy returned to his cover position with his men and continued the battle.

As a result of Murphy’s call, an MH-47 Chinook helicopter, with eight additional SEALs and eight Army Night Stalkers aboard, was sent in as part of the QRF to extract the four embattled SEALs. As the Chinook drew nearer to the fight, a rocket-propelled grenade hit the helicopter, causing it to crash and killing all 16 men aboard.

On the ground and nearly out of ammunition, the four SEALs continued to fight. By the end of a two-hour gunfight that careened through the hills and over cliffs, Murphy, Axelson and Dietz had fallen. Over 30 Taliban were also dead. The fourth SEAL, Petty Officer Luttrell, was blasted over a ridge by a rocket-propelled grenade and knocked unconscious. Though severely wounded, the fourth SEAL and sole survivor, Petty Officer Marcus Luttrell, was able to evade the enemy for nearly a day; after which local nationals came to his aide, carrying him to a nearby village where they kept him for three more days. Luttrell was rescued by U.S. Forces on July 2, 2005.

By his undaunted courage, intrepid fighting spirit and inspirational devotion to his men in the face of certain death, Lt. Murphy was able to relay the position of his unit, an act that ultimately led to the rescue of Luttrell and the recovery of the remains of the three who were killed in the battle.

Lt. Michael P. Murphy was buried at Calverton National Cemetery less than 20 miles from his childhood home. Lt. Murphy’s other personal awards include the Purple Heart, Combat Action Ribbon, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Ribbon and National Defense Service Medal.

Lt. Murphy is survived by his mother Maureen Murphy; his father Dan Murphy; and his brother John Murphy. Dan and Maureen Murphy, who were divorced in 1999, remain close friends and continue to live in N.Y. Their son John, 22, attends the New York Institute of Technology, and upon graduation will pursue a career in criminal justice, having been accepted to the New York City Police Department.

Navy Times article here