US Vets - always serving

In a way - this has to make you proud.

A tour bus of U.S. senior citizens defended themselves against a group of alleged muggers, sending two of them fleeing and killing a third in the Atlantic coast city of Limon, police said on Thursday.

One of the tourists, a retired member of the U.S. military aged about 70, put assailant Warner Segura in a head lock and broke his clavicle after the 20-year-old and two other men armed with a knife and gun held up their tour bus Wednesday,

The Milbloggies.

Okay, due to an extreme lack of participation, Castle Argghhh! didn't make it to the top 5 for the US Veteran category in the Milbloggies, thusly saving us from having to do any more non-participation in online popularity contests that we never win anyway.

Or so I thought.

Turns out that Fuzzybear Lioness *did* make the top 5 in her category, Military Supporter. At the moment of this posting, she's leading - but only by one vote.

So, click here - register if you have to, and vote for her. It'll make you feel all... Fuzzy inside. Yeah, that's it! And if you need a reason to vote for her - the category is Military Supporter, and...

Fuzzybear is the Heart of Project Valour-IT, whereby we give voice-activated laptops to wounded warriors whose injuries prevent them from using computers in the normal fashion. You know, like you are, right this second. And we just gave our 1000th, that's One Thousandth, laptop, this week. No, she didn't do it alone. Of course not. Many of us helped. But it was her dream and her drive that have helped two battalions, 2/3s of a Brigade's combat strength worth of profoundly wounded warriors stay connected in ways that all of you reading this post simply take for granted.

BUT SHE GOT IT STARTED AND MADE IT HAPPEN.

I know. I was there. I was one of the people she mercilessly browbeat to help her get it started. And I'm damn glad she did. So, go vote for her. Even if you aren't registered - go register for the sole purpose of casting your vote for her. Not because I told you to - but because there are simply damn few of us out here in our little community who have done as much as she has. Because it's easy to jump on a bandwagon. It's a lot harder to conceive of a bandwagon, then build it, so that people have something to jump on.

And that's what she did.

You can access all the Milbloggies categories here.

And, as a reward for getting to the end of this post - the next installment of Bill's Vietnam Serial War Story is up.

News of Afghanistan...again

"Time for the News, already?"

Albright Blathers

via Reuters

ATLANTA, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said on Thursday the war in Iraq would go down in history as the worst disaster in U.S. foreign policy.

President George W. Bush has squandered the moral authority established by former President Jimmy Carter

The Iran-Iraq war started during the Carter Administration, as well as the Soviet-Aghan war. What moral authority does more than a million dead in wars that started on ones watch create? What moral authority does Presidential National Security Directive 63, withs it wording that it would be the foreign policy of the United States to keep the price of oil cheap moderate create?

Have You Signed Yet?

The Appeal for Courage:

As an American currently serving my nation in uniform, I respectfully urge my political leaders in Congress to fully support our mission in Iraq and halt any calls for retreat. I also respectfully urge my political leaders to actively oppose media efforts which embolden my enemy while demoralizing American support at home. The War in Iraq is a necessary and just effort to bring freedom to the Middle East and protect America from further attack.

Authorized by DoD Directive 1325.6 and DoD Directive 7050.6.

As of 0320Z Friday, 845 military members have signed the Appeal.

Have you?