Veterans Day

Donnie shouldn't go hunting so often...

Clark Would Bring In The U.N.

Veterans Day

Tuesday, November 11, 2003

"At the core, the American soldiers knew the difference between right and wrong, and they didn't want to live in a world in which wrong prevailed. So they fought, and won, and we all of us, living and yet to be born, must be forever profoundly grateful." - Stephen Ambrose

Blogging will be somewhat light today. I am going to the rededication of Soldier Field today and I won't be blogging tonight as I'll probably be standing on the bar at Dublin's Pub loudly toasting the men and women of our military and singing drinking songs. Heh. Maybe blogging will be light tomorrow, too...

God bless the Marines, the Army, the Navy, the Coast Guard, and the Air Force! You are my brothers and sisters and I am honored to have been counted among you.

Throughout the day I will continue to update a round up of Veterans Day posts you might enjoy:

Donald Sensing has a great post on Veterans Day.
Eric, a Marine, at Straight White Guy, has a post on Veterans Day. Also, check out the previous posts on the Marine Corps birthday and what that day means to Eric.

Fool's Blog has a lot of posts about Veterans Day and includes a link to send our military men and women fighting the War on Terror a message.

The Smarter Cop has a message for veterans today.

Paul at Sanity's Edge has a post on Veterans Day.

Frank J. has a thank you to vets buried in some more Bite Sized Wisdom. I want to see Rumsfeld and Rangel in a celebrity boxing match (not an In My World, but for real).

DANEgerus has a post on Armstice Day which became Veterans Day.

An Air Force Major writes "I Am A Veteran".

Updates at 1PM:

From the Lop Sided Poopdeck, the story of the Army's First Female Company. Great story!

From New York Newsday: This story is about a Muslim American soldier, wounded in Iraq. Thanks to Tanker Schreiber for the link.

From the Chicago Tribune:

Veterans Day began as Armistice Day to mark a joyous moment ending the Great War. At 11 a.m., on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, the Allied forces began honoring a cease-fire agreement with Germany that had been signed in the Forest of Compiegne near the tiny French village of Rethondes. Whistles blew, bands blared and the world rejoiced. The "war to end all wars" had finally ceased after four years of killing.
But this Great War gained its numerical designation, World War I, after the world erupted again in killing and flames. The armistice and the day to honor a peaceful future did not hold. Ultimately, after the even greater sacrifices of World War II and then the Korean War, Armistice Day was rechristened Veterans Day in 1954 to honor all those who have served their nation.

"On that day," read President Dwight D. Eisenhower's proclamation, "let us solemnly remember the sacrifices of all those who fought so valiantly on the seas, in the air, and on foreign shores, to preserve our heritage of freedom and let us reconsecrate ourselves to the task of promoting an enduring peace that their efforts shall not have been in vain."

Those words echo through the decades and resonate for a nation at war in 2003. On this Veterans Day, take a moment to honor all those who have served and sacrificed in this war and in all the wars before

The following are official messages:

A message from the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

A message from Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld.

Posted by Blackfive on Tuesday, November 11, 2003 at 07:03 AM in Military | Permalink | Comments (10)

Comments

"At the core, the American soldiers knew the difference between right and wrong, and they didn't want to live in a world in which wrong prevailed. So they fought, and won, and we all of us, living and yet to be born, must be forever profoundly grateful." - Stephen Ambrose

God bless the Marines, the Army, the Navy, the Coast Guard, and the Air Force! You are my brothers and sisters and I am honored to have been counted among you.

Throughout the day I will continue to update a round up of Veterans Day posts you might enjoy:

Donald Sensing has a great post on Veterans Day.
Eric, a Marine, at Straight White Guy, has a post on Veterans Day. Also, check out the previous posts on the Marine Corps birthday and what that day means to Eric.

Fool's Blog has a lot of posts about Veterans Day and includes a link to send our military men and women fighting the War on Terror a message.

The Smarter Cop has a message for veterans today.

Paul at Sanity's Edge has a post on Veterans Day.

Frank J. has a thank you to vets buried in some more Bite Sized Wisdom. I want to see Rumsfeld and Rangel in a celebrity boxing match (not an In My World, but for real).

DANEgerus has a post on Armstice Day which became Veterans Day.

An Air Force Major writes "I Am A Veteran".

Updates at 1PM:

From the Lop Sided Poopdeck, the story of the Army's First Female Company. Great story!

From New York Newsday: This story is about a Muslim American soldier, wounded in Iraq. Thanks to Tanker Schreiber for the link.

From the Chicago Tribune:

Veterans Day began as Armistice Day to mark a joyous moment ending the Great War. At 11 a.m., on the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, the Allied forces began honoring a cease-fire agreement with Germany that had been signed in the Forest of Compiegne near the tiny French village of Rethondes. Whistles blew, bands blared and the world rejoiced. The "war to end all wars" had finally ceased after four years of killing.
But this Great War gained its numerical designation, World War I, after the world erupted again in killing and flames. The armistice and the day to honor a peaceful future did not hold. Ultimately, after the even greater sacrifices of World War II and then the Korean War, Armistice Day was rechristened Veterans Day in 1954 to honor all those who have served their nation.

"On that day," read President Dwight D. Eisenhower's proclamation, "let us solemnly remember the sacrifices of all those who fought so valiantly on the seas, in the air, and on foreign shores, to preserve our heritage of freedom and let us reconsecrate ourselves to the task of promoting an enduring peace that their efforts shall not have been in vain."

Those words echo through the decades and resonate for a nation at war in 2003. On this Veterans Day, take a moment to honor all those who have served and sacrificed in this war and in all the wars before

The following are official messages:

A message from the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

A message from Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld.

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The Authors

Blackfive
Former Paratrooper and Army Officer, "Blackfive" started this blog upon learning of the valorous sacrifice of a friend that was not reported by the journalist whose life he saved.
Email: blackfive AT gmail DOT com
Jim Hanson
Retired Special Operations Master Sergeant, Jim Hanson ("Uncle Jimbo") is now focused on writing about the military, politics, intelligence operations and foreign policy.
Email: jimbo AT unclejimbo DOT com
The Laughing Wolf
Writer, photographer, and raconteur C. Blake Powers is the Laughing Wolf. He is independent in politics and covers topics including journalism, military, weapons, preparedness, space, science, cooking, food and wine, product and book reviews, and even spirituality.
Email: wolf1 AT laughingwolf DOT net
Laughing Wolf's Amazon Wish List
Grim Beorn
Grim -- an Old Norse name that means 'one who wears a mask' -- blogs on issues of intelligence, information operations, and foreign relations.
Email: grimbeornr AT yahoo DOT com
Pinch Paisley
Instapinch Bill Paisley, otherwise known as Pinch, is a 22 year (ongoing) active and reserve naval aviator. He blogs over at www.instapinch.com on a veritable cornucopia of various and sundry items and will bring a tactical naval aviator's perspective to Blackfive. Readers be warned: any comments of or about the F-14 Tomcat will be reverential and spoken in low, hushed tones.
Email: wpaisley AT comcast DOT net
Mr. Wolf
Mr. Wolf has over 26 years in the Army, Army NG, and USAR. He’s Airborne with 5 years as an NCO, before becoming an officer. Mr. Wolf has had 4 company commands. Signal Corp is his basic branch, and Public Affairs is his functional area. He recently served 22 straight months in Kuwait and Iraq, in Intel, PA, and senior staff of MNF-I. Mr. Wolf is now an IT executive. He is currently working on a book on media and the Iraq war. Functional gearhead.

In Iraq, he received the moniker of Mr. Wolf after the Harvey Kietel character in Pulp Fiction, when "challenges" arose, they called on Mr. Wolf...
Email: TheDOTMrDOTWolfAT gmail DOT com
Deebow
Deebow is a Staff Sergeant and a Military Police Squad Leader in the Army National Guard. In a previous life, he served in the US Navy. He has over 19 years of experience in both the Maritime and Land Warfare; including deployments to Southwest Asia, Thailand, the South Pacific, South America and Egypt. He has served as a Military Police Team Leader and Protective Services Team Leader and he has served on assignments with the US State Department, US Air Force Security Police, US Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the US Drug Enforcement Administration. He recently spent time in Afghanistan working with, training and fighting alongside Afghan Soldiers and is now focused on putting his 4 year Political Science degree to work by writing about foreign policy, military security policy and politics.
McQ
McQ has 28 years active and reserve service. Retired. Infantry officer. Airborne and Ranger. Consider my 3 years with the 82nd as the most fun I ever had with my clothes on. Interests include military issues and policy and veteran's affairs.
Email: mcq51 -at - bellsouth -dot- net
Crush

Chris Carter is a former USAF firefighter and now civilian firefighter who covers military history, national security, and baseball. Find out more at his website.

Twitter: @CrushingChris
EMAIL: crushnik AT yahoo DOT com
Tantor

Tantor is a former USAF navigator/weapon system officer (WSO) in F-4E Phantoms who served in the US, Asia, and Europe. He is now a curmudgeonly computer geek in Washington, DC, picking the taxpayers pocket. His avocations are current events, aviation, history, and conservative politics.
Long Tab Sig O
Twenty-three years of Active and Reserve service in the US Army in SF (18B), Infantry and SOF Signal jobs with operational deployments to Bosnia and Africa. Since retiring he's worked as Senior Defense Analyst on SOF and Irregular Warfare projects and currently ensconced in the emerging world of Cyberspace.

The Authors Emeritus

Major Pain
Major Pain -- A Marine who began his blog in Iraq and reflects back on what he learned there and in Afghanistan. To the point opinions, ideas and thoughts on military, political and the media from One Marine’s View.
Email: onemarinesview AT yahoo DOT com
Froggy
Froggy is 21 year Navy SEAL corpsman and vet of the War on Terror. Follow Froggy on Twitter @FroggyRuminates
Driven
"Driven" is an OIF vet, Sergeant and team Leader in the 82nd Airborne Division...
Uber Pig
Uber Pig was an Infantryman from late 1991 until early 1996, serving with Second Ranger Battalion, I Corps, and then 25th Infantry Division. At the time, the Army discriminated against enlisted soldiers who wanted use the "Green to Gold" program to become officers, so he left to attend Stanford University. There, he became expert in detecting, avoiding, and surviving L-shaped ambushes, before dropping out to be as entrepreneurial as he could be. He is now the founder of a software startup serving the insurance and construction industries, and splits time between Lake Tahoe, Boonville, and San Francisco, CA.

Uber Pig writes for Blackfive a) because he's the proud brother of an enlisted Civil Affairs Reservist who currently serves in Iraq, b) because he looks unkindly on people who make it harder for the military in general, and for his brother in particular, to succeed at their missions and come home in victory, and c) because the Blackfive readers and commenters help keep him sane.

Email: enlisted swine (at) gmail (dot) com.
COB6
COB6 spent 24 years in the active duty Army that included 5 combat tours with service in the 1st Ranger Battalion and 1st Special Forces Group . COB6 was enlisted (E-7) and took the OCS route to a commission. COB6 retired a few years back as a field grade Infantry officer. Currently COB6 has a son in the 82nd Airborne that just returned from his third tour and has a newly commissioned daughter in the 4th Infantry Division.
Subsunk
Subsunk is a retired US Navy Submarine Officer.