Firepower

From the Kentucky Post:

The man being hailed as a hero for stopping a suicide bomber in Iraq before dawn Tuesday called home to Northern Kentucky Wednesday to assure his mother he was OK -- again. James Lawrence Ross III, better known as "JR," told his mother, Sandy Gregg of Taylor Mill, that he was just doing his job when he fired more than 100 rounds from a guard tower, detonating a car filled with explosives that was headed toward the 101st Airborne Division's base in Talafar, about 235 miles northwest of Baghdad.

Army officials are saying his actions saved hundreds of lives.

<...>

When he called his mother Wednesday, he was more worried about fellow soldiers and his mother than he was for himself, Gregg said.

<...>

Ross had just started his guard duty in the watch tower near the base entrance Tuesday morning.

"The fellow before him said everything was quiet. He said, 'Make sure you dress warm; it's a really cold night.'" Ross told his mother.

"He said he was on duty about a half-hour when a car came down the road," Gregg said. "That's not really unusual because people make wrong turns and don't realize they can't get through. Most cars will make a U-turn and turn around.

"But this car kept coming down the road. He said he shot 100 rounds in less than 30 seconds."

News reports said Ross kept shooting until the car blew up, leaving a large crater near the base entrance and blowing out windows for blocks.

Nyuck Nyuck - Here's an observation from Scott Ott. (And a link to Lt Col West's defense fund can be found in the comments)