http://www.washingtonpost.com/opini...508b82d_story.html?postshare=5661432411308024 Good piece, really hit home with me.
I've always said "Happy Memorial Day" to veterans w/o thinking through how those words sound to them. Truly an oxymoron. I think I need another phrase.
Went out to the National Cemetery yesterday to see my grandaddys grave. Getting to see an American flag stuck by every headstone is an awesome sight. Hard not to get choked up and I've seen it several times.
My brother volunteered to place wreaths on graves a few years back. He said it was a completely overwhelming and humbling experience.
I had a fraternity brothe killed near fallajuah in Sept 04. Every Memorial Day his favorite quote stays in my head all day, "**** a bunch of a-rabs". He said it non stop after 9/11.
Great piece. Reminds me of something my dad (USMC, Vietnam) and I shared this weekend. Was a terse moment after everyone had gone back inside after a BBQ. It was nothing really more than a "to the ones who didn't make it back" and a grimace. Perhaps a bit too much of survivors guilt is sprinkled in here, who knows. We didn't talk about it. And our BBQ was just about like everyone elses. Just a good day to get together and celebrate being alive, back home and surrounded by family and friends. That's fine by both of us. But, my lord, the facebook posts.
Was he Force Recon? Just curious. The block to block, house to house, room to room fighting that happened in Fallujah was as intense as any fighting in the entire war. Recon Marines were set up in hide sites calling danger close fire missions for insurgent positions all around themselves.
I was in Army Spec Ops so I know a few of them and have talked with them some. We had spec ops aircraft there in Fallujah providing CAS to those guys at the time. But, to answer your question, I would never pretend to know first hand about the door kickers or what they endured.