Ten Years Ago, Four American Heroes Gave Their All

My son Ethan Arguello posted this on July 29th, the 10th Anniversary of the deaths of four of his fellow Marines who gave their lives for American liberty. I've posted about these heroes before - part of their story is here. Their mothers, widows, sisters still grieve, and so do their brothers in arms:

"To the ones who gave it all.

"10 years ago....
Ten years ago today something happened that would have a greater impact on my life than I could ever imagine.

"While in Iraq, our platoon and company were split up into three neighboring towns. We were comfortable working here. We knew there were terrorists all around us and from what I remember, moral was high. Exercising, patrolling and sleeping had become a way of life. We relieved an army striker unit that had been in that area of operation for at least several months and reported no U.S. casualties but a known presence of terrorists. On a regular quiet day, we got a call of an attack on one of our positions, QRF was sent out. What seemed like an eternity of time to pass before their return, they returned with bad news. Jose Mata put his arm over my shoulder and told me the news, the news that we could never change. It was news that we couldn't share with anyone else until their families were notified. Together we sat that evening mostly in silence around the rest of the platoon who was not completely aware of what had just happened. A long last couple months we would spend in that country, without four of our brothers. The next day, in tremendous mental pain,HNFMF Chadwick Kenyon told me that he had spent the last minutes with Christian Williams partiality conscious in the back of the MedEvac vehicle. Sgt. Williams, Cpl. Baucus, LCpl. Butterfield and LCpl. Hanson, would have never chosen anyone else to go before them. They were men of honor, loyalty, respect and dignity, who any of us would have done the same for them. With nothing negative to say about these men by anybody, it makes us wonder, why them? I've attempted to understand why they were called before me and our other Marines and never have an answer just a thought that, they wouldn't have wanted it to be us.

"Only the good die young" is a saying that has held strong in my mind every time I think of them. Our Marines stood up to the evil group of terrorists that killed our citizens on September 11, 2001. They did this without the concern of their own safety. They did this for me and you. I and the other Marines of 3rd LAR Delta Company witnessed these Heroes, on many occasions, both in training and in combat give their unselfish 100% at everything they did.

"A big thank you to the families who raised these young warriors to be our protectors. Their character and discipline exemplified the ethics and values that I want my children to one day carry.

"To the Marines who gave it all, that we now call our heroes. We love you, we remember you, we mourn for you and will always honor you.

"Godspeed, USMC"

        ~ Ethan Arguello

Ten Years Ago, These Men Gave Their Lives For Us and For America

The Memorial Day remembrance in our household includes these men of the 3rd LAR, the subjects of the video, seven Marines and their Navy medic, who served with my son, Sgt Ethan D Arguello, and paid for our freedom with their lives in 2006 in Iraq:

Cpl. Phillip E. Baucus
Lance Cpl. Anthony E. Butterfield
Cpl. Adam A. Galvez
Lance Cpl. Jason Hanson
Lance Cpl. Shane P. Harris
Seaman Chadwick T. Kenyon
Lance Cpl. Randy L. Newman
Sgt. Christian B. Williams

Some years ago, I tried to gather their stories in one place:

"While some boys their age spent 2006 making cool protest posters in frat houses at elite universities and cementing their futures as unelected political advisors to the White House, these men were Marines lodging an effective prohibition against totalitarianism, against slavery, against cruel and unusual punishments, against theocracy, against religious persecution, against kidnapping, against abuse of women and children."

Follow the links below to read the stories of how they served, and how they died.

How can we not cherish each day of our lives in these great United States, and how can we not stand firm against encroachment on the liberty bought for us with the sacrifices of patriots who said no to tyrants again and again and again throughout our history?

Thank you Father God, for sending such men to protect us and our country.

In this post, you can find links to memorial sites and guest books for these heroes, if you would like to leave a note for their families.

Links to the series of all 5 posts:
Part I Introduction
Part II Body Armor Saves Lives
Part III Greater Love Has No Man: 4 killed by Bomb
Part IV The Whole Universe: 3 killed by IED, 1 killed by IED
Part V Apprendix: Links to articles about these men & the 2nd Platoon

Learn their stories. Remember them. Keep faith with them. Catch the torch they throw, and hold it high.

News from the Front: APIII% Team on the American Border, Assisting Law Enforcement

Post by Matthew Leber.




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This is Matthew Leber, Public Relations Officer for the American Patriots III% in the video, interviewing the US Border Patrol officer.  Mr Leber is a retired Special Forces veteran, a friend of our son Ethan, and on the up-and-up. The APIII% team is working directly with official border agencies and law enforcement to assist them in any way they need. They are a law abiding, responsible organization with an effective purpose. These guys are still protecting us, on their own time now, and they need our support.

There is a good profile of the American Patriot the 3% organization on the SHTF Journal. Founder Scot Seddon had this to say about their current mission protecting America's southern border:

SHTF Journal: "What do you see as your mission at the border and do you think you can complete it with the resources you have?"

Scot: "Our mission at the border is outreaching to border agencies and work together with them. Being we cannot detain people at the border so we use comms to call in grid coordinates to assist the border Patrol. Funding has been made possible through the APIII Paypal account. The mission cannot be completed without the financial help of our APIII Patriots. Without that, the mission goes belly up as we do not have any fed funding. We do need more resources."

Scot:  "APIII is not a Militia. We are in the security business with combat veterans that work hand in hand with border patrol. We have close affiliations with Arizona Border Recon as well in the effort to secure the border. Everything is done legally, and with the consent of local LEO agencies. "

Be sure to go over and read the whole interview.

May God bless and keep them and all those they work with. 

Ethan's Protest Grows Legs - and Boots On The Ground: No Negotiation With Terrorists!

WTOC-TV: Savannah, Beaufort, SC, News, Weather

This is a pretty moving interview. Ethan has been a staunch and reliable friend to his Gold Star families, and in fact recently returned from visiting with a couple of them while on vacation. He has traveled to speak at memorial dedications, and holds these people in his heart, loving them and honoring his brothers' memory. So this is "the real Ethan" when he speaks about those mothers and dads.

Ethan Arguello continued to stand and protest this morning, back in his normal place on the road at Bluffton today. A nearby business has been encouraging him and is happy with his presence. He is averaging about 11 "honks" a minute, which is pretty strong. The American Patriot 3% are still standing up as well.

Another man joined the protest today, standing outside the gate at the front of Camp Pendleton, and he plans to spend his next Saturday standing up for what is right.

A third man posted to the America's One Voice Facebook page that he and his group protested today as well, and had a strong positive reception.

The story continues to get picked up by additional media.  Weasel Zippers did a good, well-balanced story:
Marine Confronts Protester Against Bergdahl Swap at Parris Island

The full text of the Live 5 News story, with a good quote from Matthew Leber of the AP3%,  is here: Former Marine protests soldier swap

Business Insider has two versions of the story, both of which note the reason for the protest, and the longer one links directly to Ethan's personal Facebook page:
Top Marine In Charge Of The Marine Corps' Boot Camp Accused Of Assaulting A Protester

The San Jose Mercury News put the story on their "California News Today" page: Video: Parris Island Sgt. Major scraps with former Marine protesting prisoner … – BizPac Review

Free Republic posted the story yesterday (come on guys, please give the focus to the protest!), and the comment thread is still hopping today:
Parris Island senior Sergeant Major assaults former Drill Instructor

The destination site Conservative Voices featured the video today:
Video: Parris Island Sgt. Major scraps with former Marine protesting prisoner swap outside base

We are all focused on moving back to the real news - which is that the release of enemy leaders during ongoing hostility is unacceptable and should not happen again. We want RESCUE, no ransom of captives.
This is why men and women, including my son Ethan Arguello, are standing up, alone if necessary, around the country, holding signs in peaceful but firm protest.

Please consider taking part. Make a sign and Hold it up. Ethan's sign says  "Americans Do Not Negotiate With Terrorists".  What will your sign say?

Ethan's Lone Protest Spreads: Camp Pendleton SATURDAY AM June 7, 2014. Will You Let This Man Stand Alone For What Is Right?

This is a quick post to get the info out onto the net. I will update about the protests and media coverage frequently - please check back, as Google doesn't seem to index changes to post titles. UPDATES at bottom of the post...

Will you stand alone for what is right? You don't need a group, or a plan, or permission. You just need a sign, and the courage to stand. For an hour or a day. Whatever YOU have. Stand.

FIRST: There will be a Lone Protester outside Camp Pendleton's front gate tomorrow morning Saturday 6/7/14 at 0900. Will you let this man stand alone?  Bring your own sign and water. Come stand up for what is right. Stand up for an America that rescues captives and does not pay ransom or tribute - or unlawfully release enemy leaders to return to the field.

If you are on Facebook, please join Ethan's group "America's One Voice" to track the latest developments in real time. Since he opened the group yesterday, it now has 277 members and is growing.

Second, here are some of the news reports of Ethan Arguello's protest.  A massive debt of thanks goes out to Mathew Leber of  American Patriot The III% South Carolina Chapter , who showed up to stand with Ethan, filmed the event (thank heaven, because he caught the altercation when the Sgt Major took Ethan's cover and left with it) and then delivered the footage to local area media this morning.

This one is from Ethan's home area in west Texas, Midland / Odessa's NewsWest 9:
"Soldier Swap for Taliban Members Has Midland Veteran Protesting on East Coast Every Morning"
  There is video and a written story at the link.

This one is from the Savannah GA channel WTOC. The title is misleading as it was not Ethan who "got into an altercation" but see the footage and read the story:

Former Marine gets into altercation while protesting outside of Parris Island

A video report from WTOC:
Former Marine protests soldier swaps

And here is WTOC's story from the Sgt Major's bond hearing on the assault and battery charge:

WTOC Exclusive: Video of Parris Island marine bond hearing

I am sorry for that. The Sgt Major lost his temper - failing to recognize Ethan's peaceful act was standing up for HIM as well as all other active duty -  and did something he should not have done. Ethan had to stand up for himself and for free speech, but I hope this part of this episode will be quickly forgotten. 

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UPDATE:   Good opinion piece about this on Uncle Sam's Misguided Children:

Parris Island senior Sergeant Major assaults former Drill Instructor

UPDATE 6/6 9:46 PM  Ethan's Lone Protest was picked up by Nashville TN station WSMV TV :
Former Marine protests soldier swap

UPDATE 6/6 10:18 PM  WTOC's original story was picked up by online version of Fox5 affiliate KVVU Las Vegas NV:  Former Marine gets into altercation while protesting outside of Parris Island

UPDATED: An American Son, An American Sign: Standing Up Against Negotiating With Terrorists

"Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little."                                                                                                                                 ~ Edmund Burke.

UPDATE 6/4/14  -  A group of Vets from the American Patriots III% (AP3%) and friends are planning to join Ethan in a protest at 5:00 pm Thursday, June 5th, outside the gate at the Parris Island Marine Corps Recruit Depot. See Facebook Group "America's One Voice" for more details.
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Original Post: When I first heard that Bowe Bergdahl had been released, I was really happy. I was very uneasy to learn that he had been traded for five Taliban prisoners from Guantanamo Prison. Then, my son Ethan filled me in on some of the facts, and I understood that this is not a time to rejoice.  (Pat at SIGIS has a roundup of info on the troubling details)

Ethan Arguello is a former Marine, a veteran who served in Iraq. I have written before about him, and his brothers in arms who were killed in support of liberty there.

Ethan sees this trade, this ransom, as a betrayal of our military, of the good men and women who gave their lives and their bodies for America, and of the Gold Star families we honor for the terrible sacrifices of loss they live with every day.

So for the past two days, and continuing for the rest of this week, Ethan is standing out on the road holding a sign, protesting against abandoning our 200 year old policy against ransom. His hand lettered sign reads "AMERICANS Do Not Negotiate With Terrorists".

Here is what he told me about it:
"Mother, to be honest with you, I'm angered by this just as much as I am and was with my fellow Marines deaths. I'm mourning for every Gold Star parent, the fact that we captured their child's killers then released them is disgusting.  Most of my hurt in my heart is for the parents (Gold Star) of the brave ones that step up to protect others."

Later on, he added this:  "I will continue to be an American in accordance with our Constitution and the ideals of our founding fathers.  Even though Americans are becoming non American, I will continue.  I believe in the enabling of every deserving person to succeed in every effort that they shall embark on.  If they are productive members of society, they will represent the the average hard working American that pulled their own weight and managed their own responsibilities as done before in history.  "

If you happen to be driving along Highway 278 in Bluffton, South Carolina, look for him there.

He said he is getting great support, lots of honks and people yelling their approval. Thank you to the nice lady who brought him a bottle of cold water! People are glad to know they are not the only ones angry about this  - and people who didn't know the hard truth (like me at first), are becoming angry when they find out what has really happened here.

And some pics taken from cars are starting to show up on Facebook and Instagram, with great comments, so he is getting a little "viral" coverage.

There isn't a lot one man can do in the face of something like this. But there is always something. And Ethan is Doing Something on his own, without waiting on anyone else. He is standing up for what he believes, not hanging about to see if anyone else is willing to stand with him.

And that is the kind of courage that makes America, America.

My sons are all three very fine men, and they continually amaze and impress me. Pride in my children is something they have earned by their own actions and lives. Every once in a while, they will each do something that takes my breath away. And that is how I feel right now.

I'm very proud of my American Son today.

My Chex Mix Recipe

She shows up after weeks of silence, only to post a Chex Party Mix recipe... during Lent?!?!?! 

Blogging is light right now for reasons previously given (I am still sharing a computer and focusing on creative ventures). This post goes back to why I started this blog originally. It was a good way to share my recipes when the kids called to ask "how do you make your.....?". When I posted them on Facebook, they rapidly disappeared.... but here on the blog, it is easy to find the recipe again in a jiffy.

When Ethan called tonight to ask how I make my party mix, which is only a little different from the "official" version (and still different from the real Original Version), I remembered I have never posted this recipe on here..... soooo here you go, Ethan! :-)

CHEX MIX

3    cups Corn Chex® cereal
3    cups Rice Chex® cereal
3    cups Wheat Chex® cereal
1    cup peanuts or mixed nuts (sometimes I add pecans when I have them - toast them first)
1    cup bite-size pretzels or pretzel sticks
1 1/4 stick (1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons) butter or margarine
5    tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2     teaspoons salt
1    teaspoon garlic powder
1    teaspoon onion powder

You need a big pan to bake this in. If you don't have one, one of those disposable foil turkey roasters from the grocery store is good. Just rinse it out and save it to use over and over again.  If I am making a double batch, I make two separate batches instead of trying to mix it all together. It just works better that way.

Heat oven to 250°F. In large bowl, mix cereals, nuts, and pretzels. Set aside.

Put butter in ungreased large roasting pan, and melt butter in oven. Stir in seasonings.

Pour cereal and pretzels into the pan and stir it, bringing the bottom pieces to the top over and over, for about 3 minutes until all the pieces are evenly coated.

Place in the oven and Bake, uncovered, for 1 hour, stirring a couple of times every 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and taste a (cooled) piece. If it needs a little more salt, sprinkle the salt shaker over it while it is still warm & stir it once or twice to distribute.

Let it sit out until completely cool before covering it or putting it away.  Store in airtight container.

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A blessed Lent, and a Joyous Easter to all and sundry! God bless you and yours this year!

Joining the NRA. Because We Don't Have A Marine Sentry Post of Our Own.

This is a picture of the Marine Corps Sentry Post behind the Little White House in Warm Springs, Georgia, where President Franklin Roosevelt spent much of his time. Aside from the "Servants Quarters" and this Marine Sentry post, it is very much a typical example of a modest American home of the era.

What does this have to do with the National Rifle Association? Well, it is like this: we love our Marines (and we are SO PROUD of the two in our family), but unlike the President, Congress and assorted very wealthy actors, we don't have one stationed full time on the property to protect us. And our modest little American home is no one's "servant's quarters".

 I like knowing that if I ever needed or wanted to, I could choose to learn to shoot and purchase the weapon of my own free choice, and have the capacity to protect my ownself and those around me. And I have always felt very safe knowing that any or all of my neighbors may make that choice for themselves as well.

Without having to get permission from anyone. Especially not from people who are supposed to be servants of my freedom, but who seem to have forgotten that I am not their serf (and God bless you, Joshua Boston, for telling the truth so eloquently. Ooorah!) .(PS Dear Veterans, please see this post about how much we need you here now that you are home again)


So, thanks Mark Levin for the link and the nudge to join the NRA. Right now is as good a time as any. No organization is perfect, but the NRA is a more reliable protector of the US Constitution & the liberties it spells out for us as individuals, than most of the people in Washington are.

Talk to your congresspeople (there are links in my sidebar to sites that will help you id who they are and how to contact them).  We are so grateful to have Governor Rick Perry and our State Representative Jim Keffer, R-Eastland, who are faithful to the best purposes of government in promoting genuine liberty for individuals to make our OWN decisions.

But one of the most powerful ways to make our voices heard right now is to join the NRA. Because the news media doesn't report on how many people are writing our Senators. But the media - and Congress - always notice how many new members the NRA has.

Mr Bush and The Children: The President Who Did The Right Thing Even When No One Was Looking

Reuters ran this headline yesterday: "Bush explains slow reaction to September 11 attacks: Former President George W. Bush says his apparent lack of reaction to the first news of the September 11 2001 attacks was a conscious decision to project an aura of calm in a crisis."

If I recall correctly, at the time no one criticized, but instead the media rightly praised Mr Bush's quick thinking in continuing to read the storybook to a group of little children, wrapping up calmly so as not to frighten them unduly, and waiting until he had left the classroom before switching into the take-charge crisis mode as Commander in Chief.

Regardless, I never questioned the wisdom or validity of his very-appropriate response, because I already knew, from experience, how patient and caring Mr Bush is toward children. He respects them, listens to them, and treats them kindly.

I blogged last year about my young son's encounter with then-Governor Bush in this post:

The Kids and the Future President of the United States
"Some years ago, when George W Bush was Governor of Texas, we lived in a neighborhood in Midland near Laura's family. It is an ordinary middle-class neighborhood, a few blocks from where the elder Bush's lived when George was a child. When George and Laura came to visit their family, he sometimes took walks, alone, around the quiet streets. Back then, he didn't need the Secret Service to shadow him."

Go to the original post to read it all, and find out why I will always think of Mr Bush as "the President who did the right thing even when nobody was looking."
________

7/31 UPDATE: Thanks to Pat @ SIGIS for the link in her always-marvelous (even when I'm not in it) "Full Metal Jacket Reach Around: Jennifer's Birthday Trip to Second Hand Rose Edition".

"Who More Than Self Their Country Loved"

The Memorial Day remembrance in our household includes these men of the 3rd LAR, the subjects of the video, seven Marines and their Navy medic, who served with my son, Sgt Ethan D Arguello, and paid for our freedom with their lives in 2006 in Iraq:

Cpl. Phillip E. Baucus
Lance Cpl. Anthony E. Butterfield
Cpl. Adam A. Galvez
Lance Cpl. Jason Hanson
Lance Cpl. Shane P. Harris
Seaman Chadwick T. Kenyon
Lance Cpl. Randy L. Newman
Sgt. Christian B. Williams

Last year, I wrote:

"While some boys their age spent 2006 making cool protest posters in frat houses at elite universities and cementing their futures as unelected political advisors to the White House, these men were Marines lodging an effective prohibition against totalitarianism, against slavery, against cruel and unusual punishments, against theocracy, against religious persecution, against kidnapping, against abuse of women and children.

"Those who gave their lives gave them not once but every single day. Each of them and each of their brother Dragoons gave their lives every dusty deadly freezing boiling intense tedious extreme exhausted hour of every single day they spent in the desolation that remains of cursed Babylon before the terrible day when their lives were taken from them.

"The Marines whose wounds of body or spirit will forever declare their personal mettle of Honor shouldered the burdens of potential injury every single day before the attacks that cost them dearly, in faithful love for their comrades, their families, and their America. You are not named here, your stories are your own to tell or not as you see fit. But we remember you, and are grateful.

"These youthful men who returned home also give the coming years of their far horizons: they are witness and example to the sacrifices American heroes willingly made to bring liberty to lost and pitiable lands suffering under the yoke of dead history and the darkness of brutal tradition."

How can we not cherish each day of our lives in these great United States, and how can we not stand firm against encroachment on the liberty bought for us with the sacrifices of patriots who said no to tyrants again and again and again throughout our history?

Thank you God, for sending such men to protect us and our country.

Please also visit the blog "Through The Eyes Of A Gold Star Mom": the amazing, hope-and-love-filled story of Amy Galvez, whose son died for Freedom in Iraq.

In this post, you can find links to memorial sites and guest books for these heroes, if you would like to leave a note for their families.

Links to the series of all 5 posts:
Part I Introduction
Part II Body Armor Saves Lives
Part III Greater Love Has No Man: 4 killed by Bomb
Part IV The Whole Universe: 3 killed by IED, 1 killed by IED
Part V Apprendix: Links to articles about these men & the 2nd Platoon

UPDATED May 30: Thank you, Pat @ And So It Goes In Shreveport, for the link.

Best of the Week in the Blogroll

My computer was unusable for several days this week, due to some kind of ugly "hoodoo" that attacked it. Thanks (HUGE THANKS) to my husband Paul for his diligent effort in fixing it for me.

I took advantage of the enforced internet idleness brief cold snap to make up a year's worth of chili (about 15 pounds) and put into the freezer. By using our FoodSaver vacuum sealer to package it, it will keep, frozen, indefinitely. I an not an Amazon affiliate, but if you want to look on line for a vacuum sealer, stop in at SIGIS and use Pat's Amazon Search box - she'll get a small comission for the referral if one makes a purchase. It's an easy way to for us consumers to support our favorite bloggers and doesn't add to our costs. 

When Paul handed my machine back to me on Friday evening, I found it had been a rich week in the blogging world. Lots of people outdid themselves - here are a few of those:

Josh Painter (of Texas for Sarah Palin) has a new blog focused on Texas politics: Brazos Valley Pundit. In one post this week, he reported the excellent news that the Texas Senate has approved "The Ultrasound Bill" - a law that finally gives pregnant women the right of access to their own medical information by allowing them to see the ultrasound of their baby before they make a final decision to abort. The bill also "ensures that every woman has the right to speak with the abortion doctor at least 24 hours in advance about risks, complications, and alternatives, just as they would receive from a physician prior to virtually any other procedure."

Miss Fuzzy Slippers has a satirical tour-de-fource that is almost too close to possible reality for comfort. Read it and laugh: "Fuzzy's Faux News: Central Planning/Unintended Consequences Edition". This has generated a LOT of commentary. It's a brilliant post, with a long life ahead of it.  Be sure to read it!

In a story that just keeps climbing back up after being pushed off the fence, Political Junkie Mom tells us about the White House's latest attempt to "have a chilling effect" on freedom of the press.  The Obama Administration threatened Reporter Carla Marinucci and her newspaper for reporting the truth, then lied about their attempts to bully the San Francisco Chronicle ... Big events have the spotlight, but we all need to see this little tale of genuine, honest ethics by the San Francisco Chronicle's newsroom and editorial staff.

"Watts Up With That" is the best climate-science blog around. Whatever element of weather, atmosphere or climate I am interested in, there are great posts (with superior comments) about the topic. Want to understand Sun Spots? How about El Nino? Historical weather, like the middle ages' Maunder Minimum? Wattsupwiththat.com is the place to start. One of this week's posts, "Back to basics: “Green Electric” becomes “General Electric” again", spreads word of real science's ultimate triumph over pop-sci. It
seems the whole "Green" thing is just so yesterday, and the popular kids are ready to move on to something new.

Clifford at Red Stick Rant has his take on it at "Guess What Isn't Selling?".  Oh and while you are there, check out one very interesting post by a new Guest blogger "The Grey Man": "The Man Who Shot Osama Bin Laden" He proposes that this plot line is THE campaign strategy for Obama's last two years in office. It makes a lot of things make sense to know the narrative they are using as their hook....

What were women's lives like before Sharia law's body & soul-destroying tenets took hold of the Moslem countries of the Middle East? They were free, independent, and educated - virtually on a par with modern women in Western nations today. Alice @ Just Genesis has a great overview "The Status of Women in Ancient Egypt and Arabia".

And last, but oh most certainly not least, is Gagdad Bob's stream of uber-consciousness musings on the struggle "between conservative individualism and leftist collectivism" (as well as a commentary on Mr
Obama's Osama Bin Laden speech) in "Dar al-Islam and Dar al-Obama". Bob's posts are never easy but they are always accessible. This post is well  worth printing out and taking with you to read in quiet on your lunch hour. While you are there, be sure and take a look at another post from the week: "God Spends Most of His Timelessness Arranging Meetings and Marriages"....

Have a great week - and pray for Rain in Texas, please!


Photo: One of my favorite pictures of my three Mother's Day presents! :-)

Dear Veterans, Your Country Needs You Now

Bumping this post up from a longer version last year.... More than ever after these budget "deal" fiascoes, we need people who can remember the objective is to drain the swamp, and who won't try to appease the alligators:

Dear Young (and Older) Veterans,

When you come home, and have completed your military service and are a civilian again for good, please run for public office. Right away.

Because, gentlemen and ladies, we still need you. We need candidates for office who are tried and true neighbors of the ordinary American. We need representatives who put the welfare of the USA and its people before political expediency and personal gain.

From our first president, George Washington, to our local governors and mayors, America has always relied on her Brave to guide her safely through the calms as well as the storms.

We need people who will read bills themselves instead of taking the word of the lobbyists who wrote them. Who will debate bills honestly on the floor of Congress instead of rubber stamping the trade-off deals their aides made in the back rooms. Who will insist that voting on bills happen in Congress and not be polled in advance.

We need people who still have the capacity to notice and say out loud "That's not right!" when they get to Congress and discover the hidden suppuration and game playing and elitism and favoritism.

We need you.

Throw your hat in the ring for State Representative, or for Congress. Run for school board, or county commission or city council. Your political party has local offices that need strong leadership and integrity in one local party will empower others and spread throughout the state.




Run for office while you are still be able to hear the confident voice of your soul that sent you into battle prepared to defend the Most Exceptional Country that has ever been or ever will be.

Run for office and make use of the strength of will that brought you out conditioned to captain your part of the Most Exceptional Country that ever was, and prepared to guarantee it always will be.

So don't hesitate. Be yourself. Bring your bravery to bear on the government of these United States, our towns and schools.

Bring your clear-eyed humility to face down the scandalmongers without being deterred or delayed in your objective.

Bring your respect for the traditions and memories earned by those who went ahead, and your commitment to preserve "these truths" for those who will follow after.

Bring your understanding that sometimes failure is essential because capitulation is far far worse. And that falling down is just a signal to get up again. And again. And again.

Bring your confidence in a bright future for all hard-working Americans.

Bring your capacity for decisive action, your willingness to accept risk for the greater good, your visceral comprehension of what real discipline and honor are and how they are lived.

You are another Greatest Generation, and America needs you still.

Start now while you know what it is all worth.

Bring your true self.

How awesome would that be? A government of Americans who are all tried and true, who stayed true.

All it takes to make that happen is you.

(Originally posted here May 30, 2010 as "One More Request Of The Brave: Veterans, Please Run For Office")


April 17 UPDATE: Thanks to Pat @SIGIS for the link!

Remembering Our Fallen Warriors: Sgt Christian B Williams, the Polk County Florida Fallen, and the Traveling Tribute Wall

My Marine, Ethan Arguello (now a civilian again), asked me to share this post he wrote, to reach out to all Marines and Veterans with ties to Polk County (Winter Haven) Florida, especially those who served with Sgt Chris Williams in one of his several deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, with an invitation to join Chris's family and friends in a Day of Honor and Remembrance July 23rd. Details further below.

Sgt Ethan D. Arguello:
"One Iraq memory of My Friend and also my Brother in Arms, Sgt Christian B Williams: About 2 months into my second deployment, outside of Fallujah (Kharma) about 7pm(dusk), with little winds and peaceful clear skies, we were eating, talking and bedding down for the night in a field(like a cotton field), relaxed and comfortable, when... loud automatic gunfire rings out. Everybody instinctively takes cover and begins to return fire. Sgt Williams runs across an open field, completely exposed to hostile enemy fire, to get with his team. Through the 'dust, smoke and debris on the battlefield' we heard a voice throughout: "Let's go let’s get em, let's f****n go, let's go get em!" It was Sgt Christian Williams. It's that dedication to his Brothers safety and tenacious fighting spirit that I remember and love him for.

"Below is a Message I just got from Sgt Christian Williams' mother. He was an awesome man and Marine! If you can make it, please do. If not, invite whoever you think could be there. Everyone is invited, that’s the way Christian would want it and that’s the type of man he was, liked by everyone and he had a warm welcome for everybody. This is their letter to me, if you’re interested, please let me know and I will get you set up for success.
Ethan Arguello"

Jack & Marie Williams:

"Hi there. I just want you to know that we are putting together a Memorial for this year. Jack & I decided that instead of in honor of Sgt Christian B Williams, we feel that Chris would like it better if we memorialize the Fallen of Polk County with the 3rd LAR. So we are inviting you to an event on Saturday at 12 noon, the 23 of July we will conduct a ceremony " A Day of Honor and remembrance " for the fallen service members of Polk County Winter Haven Fl with the 3rd LAR Delta Co Fallen.

We will also be hosting The “Moving Tribute Memorial Wall" Some Gave All Inc from Friday July 22 to Sunday July 24,2011. The public is invited. Following the ceremony, we will also provide a cookout. We are affiliated with the VFW Post 4289; in fact the event is already in their website. Your presence will be a great honor to us. There will be Marines that will attend, in fact Richard Reed already committed himself and a Paris Island DI to join us. Let us know if you will be able to come if it will be conflict on your schedule we can understand. Keep in touch and take the very best of care.
Love in Christ,
Jack & Marie Williams "

There is contact information for reservations on the VFW Website, and the Williams family have a memorial page that is a good place to leave memories and communicate with them: Sgt Christian B. Williams Guestbook at Legacy.com.

To learn more about Chris's story, here are links to the series of posts about the 3rd LAR's 2006 Iraq deployment, and the men who gave their lives for us there:
Part I Introduction
Part II Body Armor Saves Lives
Part III Greater Love Has No Man: 4 killed by Bomb
Part IV The Whole Universe: 3 killed by IED, 1 killed by IED
Part V Apprendix: Links to articles about these men & the 2nd Platoon


Photo: Sgt Christian B Williams on "turret Watch", a dangerous job he often took on voluntarily to give his comrades relief from the task.


Ethan Duncan Arguello
Sgt Ethan D. Arguello

Mettle of Honor: Part I Heroes of the 3rd LAR Co. D 2nd Platoon 2006

A mother of sons sees them as heroes from their babyhood. We want our boys to grow to be men, to be brave, sincere, faithful, to have the strength of will to overcome fear and win the day. A mother of sons also prays over their cradles that there will be no war when they come of age, that they will never have need to exercise the valor that is in them.

When Ethan went to war, the whole thing became a-political for me. If I had my own opinion before, it vaporized when he told me he'd enlisted. I don't understand how people think they can "support the troops" without supporting the cause they serve, and that includes supporting the fearsome things they have to do and suffer and cause in order to protect the country and way of life that allows people to choose an opinon and freely protest.

I couldn't watch the news without obsessive worry so I had to just not watch it. Ethan said there were websites for the families where photos were posted but when I looked, I couldn't find them back then. I trusted President Bush, and I trusted in God.

I didn't know what to pray while he was there. It was war - so many terrible possibilities existed that I couldn't bear to think of for even long enough to pray about. I found myself praying he and all those with him would come home with mind, spirit and soul intact.

Ethan served two tours in Iraq with the Marines 3rd LAR, Company D, 2nd Platoon, including one extended tour, and he came home safely.

On the second, in 2006, they were wrapping up, only weeks from coming home with no losses, when events caught up with them and Delta Company's hurt started: with two IED attacks, six Marines and their Navy corpsman were killed, and three Marines were critically burned.

I started out to write separate stories, a small tribute of remembrance, of each of Ethan's friends who was killed in action in Iraq:
Sgt. Christian B. Williams
Cpl. Phillip E. Baucus
Cpl. Adam A. Galvez
Lance Cpl. Anthony E. Butterfield
Lance Cpl. Jason Hanson
Lance Cpl. Shane P. Harris
Lance Cpl. Randy L. Newman
Seaman Chadwick T. Kenyon

When I read the stories of these men, trying to find as many published accounts with their names as possible to help me know them, it seemed each young man's story dovetailed into the next, they were all so interconnected with each other. The events that affected one affected others.

I've never been in the military. I couldn't imagine Iraq. But in my heart was a houseful of boys and their friends, all now grown into American men.


There in Iraq, they were living out of their vehicles together, roaming the countryside together, dedicated to the same cause, employed within the same mileau: working, playing, eating, sleeping was all shared.

And then I realized that every event and every Marine in the platoon was as significant as the other because they were a true unit. I've been trying for days to know how to say it and the closest I can get is that they all survived every day, day after day, because of each other. Each did their utmost to mitigate danger to the others.

All the roads were always mined, snipers were always hiding within a stone's throw, insurgents always smiling within a group of allies. It could have happened any day - every day, to any of them - to each of them - to all of them.

Every day was heroic, every day some kind of unbelievable valor from one after another prevented disaster. Most of the time it was just part of the routine: one more mine disarmed and forgotten. Sometimes somebody made a joke just as they all realized everyone was ok, and it got turned into funny-after-the-fact stories. They were just doing their job: in a team of heroes everyone comes to work.

While some boys their age spent 2006 making cool protest posters in frat houses at elite universities and cementing their futures as unelected political advisors to the White House, these men were Marines lodging an effective prohibition against totalitarianism, against slavery, against cruel and unusual punishments, against theocracy, against religious persecution, against kidnapping, against abuse of women and children.



Those who gave their lives gave them not once but every single day. Each of them and each of their brothers gave their lives every dusty deadly freezing boiling intense tedious extreme exhausted hour of every single day they spent in the desolation that remains of cursed Babylon before the terrible day when their lives were taken from them.

The Marines whose wounds of body or spirit will forever declare their personal mettle of Honor shouldered the burdens of potential injury every single day before the attacks that cost them dearly, in faithful love for their comrades, their families, and their America. You are not named here, your stories are your own to tell or not as you see fit. But we remember you, and are grateful.

These youthful men who returned home also give the coming years of their far horizons: they are witness and example to the sacrifices American heroes willingly made to bring liberty to lost and pitiable lands suffering under the yoke of dead history and the darkness of brutal tradition.

This is a brief history, in 5 posts, compiled for Memorial Day from official published accounts (original sources linked, and direct quoted material in italics - please alert me immediately if any have been missed), of some of the sacrifices made by the heroes of the Marines 3rd LAR, Company D, 2nd Platoon, during their tour of Iraq from March through September 2006 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

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Links to the series of all 5 posts:
Part I Introduction
Part II Body Armor Saves Lives
Part III Greater Love Has No Man: 4 killed by Bomb
Part IV The Whole Universe: 3 killed by IED, 1 killed by IED
Part V Appendix: Links to articles about these men & the 2nd Platoon


Marines Ethan Duncan Arguello Midland TX

Mettle of Honor: Part II Heroes of the 3rd LAR Co. D 2nd Platoon 2006

As they rounded out their second deployment, Company D was seeing some results of Operation Iraqi Freedom, although the situation was still one of constant danger. They hadn't lost a man yet, when Cpl Graham Paulsgrove profiled the platoon and their operations on July 7 2006. The highly mobile unit went where they were needed, living out of their vehicles for weeks, nomads patrolling the barren countryside and accumulating reconnaisance intelligence, endlessly walking the roadsides scouting for buried IED mines, making the roads and villages safe for the populace and assisting in raids against insurgents.

Chadwick T. Kenyon was "Doc Kenyon". He was one of the two hospital corpsmen assigned to the Wolfpack's 2nd Platoon. He treated their wounds and they stood watch over him while he aided their fellows. Ethan said Chad never was willing to wait for the shooting to stop: if a man went down, Doc was there in a flash. Every minute mattered to him.

Petty Officer 3rd Class Jose Mata Jr., 26, was the senior Corpsman who travelled with the platoon, and the man who trained Kenyon. Ethan says Mata's knowledge of Marine history and tradition is encyclopedic. The company considers them both honorary Marines and they are deeply respected.

Personal armor has come a long way. It is heavy, hot in the 110 degree heat, and cumbersome. Shortly before 3rd LAR's deployment, it became mandatory to wear and there was initially some grumbling. But not for long, as attested by the three men in the company who took direct hits and were saved by their armor.

May 14, 2006, a sniper hit Lance Cpl. Robert F. Dean in the thigh while the company was patrolling near Gharmah. Cpl. Graham A. Paulsgrove reported:

“We had an area cordoned off and the scouts were out searching the area,” recalled Cpl. Dustin R. Nelson, Dean’s vehicle commander. “I reached down to give him some water. As he popped out of his hatch to take it from me, I heard a crack.”

“The bullet would have hit his femoral bone, and possibly gone through and hit his femoral artery,” said HN Chad T. Kenyon, 20, the corpsman who treated Dean after the incident. “If that happened, he could have bled to death within a few minutes. It would have been a sticky situation, but the plates did their job and stopped the bullet.”

This was one of those times when Doc Kenyon interpreted a gunshot as a "Go" signal to begin running toward the weapon's target. Ethan caught it on camera once everyone was safely under cover: his picture of Kenyon examining Dean (above) was taken a few minutes after Chad had braved sniper fire to get to the downed Marine.

“They make it harder to get in and out of the vehicle, but without them, I would probably be in bad shape,” said Dean, 20, [from Spring, Texas], about his side SAPI plates. “It was a good thing that they made all of us wear them.”


On June 12, 2006, Pfc. Jason Hanson was leading a patrol searching for roadside bombs in Habbanyiah when a 7.62 mm sniper round slammed squarely into his chest, knocking him down. Cpl Paulsgrove recorded the events:

“I saw [Hanson] on the ground, ran up to him and rolled him over,” said Seaman Chad T. Kenyon, one of the company’s Navy corpsmen and a 20-year-old from Tucson, Ariz. “I saw that the round had gone through the front of his flak, so I opened up his flak and saw no bleeding.

"Then he looked up at me and said, ‘I’m fine, Doc.’”

“The round definitely would have hit him in the diaphragm, which is a muscle that assists in breathing,” said Petty Officer 3rd Class Jose Mata Jr., 26, the company’s senior corpsman from Hialeah, Fla. “It’s not a good day when that happens because he probably wouldn’t have lived.”

The bruise and soreness from impact was proof of the value of the hot and uncomfortable kevlar covered ceramic. “I’m happy to carry the extra weight,” said Hanson, grinning slightly.

Sgt. Joshua S. Adams was also saved from serious injury by his armor. Cpl. Paulsgrove interviewed him July 7,2006:

“We were blocking off a road and one car pulled up from a side street, and the guy in the back of vehicle started moving around to face us, and as I was telling Sgt. Adams, he got hit,” said Lance Cpl. Kyle V. Lyons, 25, the gunner on Adam’s vehicle from Houston. “He dropped down and then said he was fine.”

“My gunner took over while I assessed my wounds and pulled some shrapnel out of my arm, then we chased down the car,” said Adams. “The round went into my SAPI but when it hit, the round shattered and some of it went into my wrist.”

"The vehicle was chased down and the two men were eventually detained. As for the rounds which struck Adams, they could have proven fatal if he had not worn his body armor, according to Petty Officer 3rd Class Jose Mata Jr., 26, the company’s senior corpsmen from Hialeah, Fla.

“The round would have hit him in the liver, causing massive internal damage - it could have been bad,” said Mata Jr. “The SAPI plates did their job.”

Much of the Dragoons' time was occupied with the tedious and tense job of walking the roadsides meticulously searching the endless dirt for slight signs of disturbance that might indicate a buried mine or IED.

Ethan tells me that Cpl. Paul Kozlowski was an agressive volunteer when it came to disarming these bombs. He says when they found a mine, Kozlowski would jump down immediately and begin digging it out with his hands.

Cpl Paulsgrove recorded their success in Gharmah in mid-May 2006:

Cpl. Paul Kozlowski, a combat engineer attached to 3rd LAR Bn., said Marines “basically sweep off the road,” clearing the route and “keeping a lookout for anything unusual”

“It’s a big team effort,” said Kozlowski, from Bowie, Md.

So far their efforts thwarted the insurgents. [The] platoon uncovered five IEDs in the [first two weeks of May], none of which caused any harm to the men seeking out the bombs.

They then moved on and spent the first 2 weeks of June assisting the 3rd Batallion/5th Regiment by securing the streets of Habbaniyah in the 120 degree heat. "The unit was busy in their area up until the time they were replaced. On their last day of operations, they found five IEDs."

They weren’t always lucky. Shortly after coming from the far western reaches of Iraq to assist Marines with Regimental Combat Team 5, one vehicle was hit by the very type of weapon they’re seeking to root out.

“It was a real eye opener,” said Cpl. Joseph E. Sherwood, a 29-year-old team leader from Orlando, Fla. “We lost our gunner for four days due to a concussion, but it could have been a lot worse.”

In the end, it would get worse, much worse, when the enemy had a run of deadly luck, but the Dragoons didn't know that in May.


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Links to the series of all 5 posts:
Part I Introduction
Part II Body Armor Saves Lives
Part III Greater Love Has No Man: 4 killed by Bomb
Part IV The Whole Universe: 3 killed by IED, 1 killed by IED
Part V Apprendix: Links to articles about these men & the 2nd Platoon


Marine Ethan Duncan Arguello Midland Texas

Mettle of Honor: Part III Heroes of the 3rd LAR Co. D 2nd Platoon 2006

On July 29th 2006 in Rawah, the platoon was at their base-of-the-moment, a joint Iraqi/US vehicle checkpoint, and those off duty were taking a brief respite in their quarters. Iraqi Police guarding the gate let a loaded gasoline truck into the compound.

LCpl Tony Butterfield and Cpl. Phillip Baucus had been around long enough that their internal radar went off. Suspicious of the truck, they ordered it to stop. When the driver ignored them, Butterfield and Baucus went into action. The two Marines used everything they had to stop a fuel truck rigged with explosives, and they succeeded in forcing a stop 15 feet from the barracks.

The suicide bomber detonated the truck but Lance Cpl Butterfield and Cpl Baucus had prevented him from driving it straight through the walls of the barracks, which would have killed everyone inside as well as those around it.

Lance Corporal Anthony E. Butterfield, 19, from Clovis, California, and Corporal Phillip E. Baucus, 28, from Wolf Creek, Montana were killed in the explosion, giving their lives to save their comrades.

When the blast occurred, it collapsed the walls of the fortified barracks and the roof came crashing down on the men inside: Lance Cpl (then PFC) Jason Hason, 21, of Forks, Washington; Sgt. Christian B. Williams, 27, from Winterhaven, Fla., and on his third enlistment with the Marines, Lance Cpl Joseph T. Hand, 20, from Kansas City MO, and Cpl. Adam A. Galvez, 21, from Salt Lake City.

The suicide bomber was not alone, and a firefight broke out after the blast.

Corporal Galvez was knocked out and when he came to, Lance Cpl. Albert D. Garcia, Jr. was working to lift the rubble off of him.

Staff Sgt. Jim Goodwin reported:

Galvez told Garcia that he believed his ankle was broken, but when Garcia went to get help, Galvez freed himself from the rubble, ignored his pain, and tried to help others injured from the blast, according to Garcia.

“He grabbed his weapon, hobbled around, he helped me dig the rest of the Marines out,” said Garcia. “Even after help got there, Doc Kenyon had to force Cpl. Galvez to get (medically evacuated) on the vehicle.”

Despite frantically digging out the trapped men as quickly as possible, they were unable to save two of those inside: Sgt Christian B. Williams and Cpl Jason Hanson, who were killed by the falling roof.

The 3rd LAR held a memorial service for the four Marines on Aug 10, 2006.

Lance Cpl. Anthony E. Butterfield left behind a last letter for his family to read should he not make it back home. Friends in his hometown said "Butterfield was popular, but kind to those who weren't." He was remembered by Pfc. Gary M. Cassen as:

“Outgoing, enthusiastic, loving, caring, honest, thoughtful, courteous, honorable, sensible and humorous.” Butterfield ... had this big vision about getting off the bus, jumping over a fence, running through a crowd pushing people over, and running straight into his mom’s arms,” said Cassen during the ceremony.

"Butterfield had a list of goals he wanted to achieve before leaving the service, which included teaching junior Marines about the LAV (Light Armored Vehicle), run a near-perfect physical fitness test, become a martial arts instructor, and take as many correspondence courses as
possible, according to Cassen. Cassen [closed with]: “We love you buddy, and we’ll miss you.”

Cpl. Phillip E. Baucus was serving his second tour of Iraq (his first was in 2004) when he was killed. He and his wife, who met in the 6th grade, would have celebrated their first anniversary on August 19, 2006.

"[Cpl. Benjamin T. Bosse remembered ] Baucus as a good friend and loving husband, who did a “damn good job” when it came to teaching junior Marines the in’s and out’s of the Marine Corps.

"Baucus’ teachings to his subordinate Marines still shows today, as those very same Marines “are still alive,” said Bosse. “He knew what hard work was…not only on the job, but off the job,”

“It didn’t matter who you were, whether you needed a place to go on Thanksgiving or you just needed to get off base, he was the guy who’d get you off (base), because he saw Marines as ’24-7,’” said Bosse. “He was always willing to go the extra mile.”

Sgt Christian B Williams had enlisted for his third term of service after only a few months of civilian life following the end of his second term. He was engaged to be married to a young woman who graduated Marine Boot Camp in April 2006. The son of a Navy man, Williams' mother said "He was Marine to the bones". He served two tours of duty in Afghanistan and five in Iraq.

A quiet man, he had been with the platoon only a short time and had already earned respect from his brothers in arms.

" Cpl Bosse was Williams’ “gunner” on a light armored vehicle. [He remembered Williams as a friend and Marine.]

"Williams often volunteered to stand the dreaded “turret watch,” which required Marines to stand guard duty behind one of the machine guns mounted to the eight-wheeled light armored vehicle. He did so to give junior Marines a break from the duty.

“He’d actually jump up in there and stand two hours, three hours, four hours, it didn’t matter,” said Bosse. “He kept to himself, but he was a Marine, and he was a friend. He... had a good heart.”

Lance Cpl Jason Hanson (then PFC, he was posthumously awarded the rank of Lance Corporal) was unscathed by a bullet to the chest in June thanks to his body armor. He had also survived 3 car accidents in Iraq.

Hanson's mother said "It took the whole universe coming down to stop him."

[Hanson] was remembered as a “tough and hard-working Marine, who never complained about anything,” said Pfc. Travis J. Henzler.

"Henzler said he knew Hanson “a little over a year,” though it “felt like a lifetime.”

"“The only time I heard Jason complain was when he got shot in the chest, but even then he wasn’t afraid to take point and risk getting shot again,” said Henzler, speaking to the assembled crowd while the fallen’s dog tags could be heard ‘clanking’ together, caused by the light morning breeze."

Cpl Bosse said of the four Marines: “They all gave their lives for one thing – for love of their country and for the men and women back home who will never understand why we do it.”

When the memorial service was over, the platoon saddled up again and went back to work thwarting insurgents and searching for roadside mines.

Cpl. Joseph T. Hand was hospitalized briefly following the blast. “I don’t remember hearing the blast,” said Hand. “I just remember the roof collapsing and thinking about my parents and my girlfriend.”

“He found his way back to us and went on patrols even while he was still hurt,” said Cpl. Jonathan G. Almeida, 21, from Beeville Texas

Cpl. Adam A. Galvez was also injured in this attack and after he assisted with rescuing the other trapped Marines, he was medivac'ed to hospital.

While recovering in Al Asad [hospital], [Galvez] was given the chance to return to the United States. He declined and insisted on rejoining his platoon. [Galvez] returned to Rawah on August 10th, in time for the memorial service for his four friends. After taking it easy for a few days, [Galvez] requested to join his platoon. [He] returned to Delta Co. 2nd Platoon as a scout.

Ten days later, the Dragoons' luck with roadside IEDs ran out.