Why bother

You see, there is this "snipe/bitch" blog that trashes what is posted and by whom at Two Peas in a Bucket discussion board website. Normally I don't care, but I was reading some old discussion threads and found this and it hit -- HARD

Anonymous said

May 26, 2008 at 6:40 pm

voltagain is correct, Memorial Day is for remembering service members who died in wars or military action. While sad and unfortunate, most of those on Buckeyed Sandy’s list are not who Memorial Day is intended for.

Now, I see nothing wrong with honoring people who served and died regardless of where/how, but if she’s going to lecture people on the true meaning of the holiday she should at least keep to the true meaning of the holiday.

http://twopeasinabucket.kaboose.com/mb.asp?cmd=display&thread_id=2566361

"Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service."

How about this?

THE WHITE HOUSE RELEASE:





                    Office of the Press Secretary

________________________________________________________________________

For Immediate Release                                       May 2, 2000







Memorandum on the White House Program for the National Moment

of Remembrance





Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies



Subject:  White House Program for the National Moment of Remembrance



   As Memorial Day approaches, it is time to pause and consider the

true meaning of this holiday. Memorial Day represents one day of 

national awareness and reverence, honoring those Americans who died 

while defending our Nation and its values. While we should honor these 

heroes every day for the profound contribution they have made to 

securing our Nation's freedom, we should honor them especially on 

Memorial Day.

   In this time of unprecedented success and prosperity throughout our

land, I ask that all Americans come together to recognize how fortunate

we are to live in freedom and to observe a universal ``National Moment

of Remembrance'' on each Memorial Day. This memorial observance

represents a simple and unifying way to commemorate our history and

honor the struggle to protect our freedoms.

   Accordingly, I hereby direct all executive departments and agencies,

in consultation with the White House Program for the National Moment of

Remembrance (Program), to promote a ``National Moment of Remembrance''

to occur at 3 p.m. (local time) on each Memorial Day.

   Recognizing that Memorial Day is a Federal holiday, all executive

departments and agencies, in coordination with the Program and to the

extent possible and permitted by law, shall promote and provide

resources to support a National Moment of Remembrance, including:

    Encouraging individual department and agency personnel, and

           Americans everywhere, to pause for one minute at 3:00 p.m.

           (local time) on Memorial Day, to remember and reflect on the

           sacrifices made by so many to provide freedom for all.

    Recognizing, in conjunction with Memorial Day, department 

            and agency personnel whose family members have made the 

            ultimate sacrifice for this Nation.

    Providing such information and assistance as may be

           necessary for the Program to carry out its functions.

   I have asked the Director of the White House Millennium Council to

issue additional guidance, pursuant to this Memorandum, to the heads of

executive departments and agencies regarding specific activities and

events to commemorate the National Moment of Remembrance.



                                           William J. Clinton



Note:  This memorandum was released by the Office of the Press Secretary on May 3.

Gee, how nice. I have no lies to tell, and these are all people that died while in uniform and in the line of duty.Maybe you want to know more about them and why I ever posted about them.Let's start with the most personal one, my first husband:

Mark William McKinney (d 1989) While yes, Mark did die from Glio Blastoma Multiforme, a type of brain cancer; it occurred during a deployment to Panama a full year before Operation Just Cause. He barely got back to the CONUS to die. It was determined (by DOD and the DVA) to be a “line of duty, related to military service death.” For years afterward the scuttle butt was that he died from wounds received at the fire-fight at the fuel storage facility. Yes he was there, no he was no the one shot.

Now the first time I lost friends:

October 30, 1981 - A USAF B-52D-55-BO, 55-078, of the 22nd Bomb Wing, March AFB, California, crashes on the eastern Colorado prairie near La Junta at 6:30 a.m. while on a low-level (400 foot altitude) training mission, killing all eight crew. No weapons were onboard.

James L. McGregor

Gani Aydoner

Clifford R. Duane

Stanley Eddleman

Tim McFarland

Bruce E.Shafer

Kendall E. Wallace

David W. Smith

October 19, 1981, This was my VERY FIRST military aircraft crash( B-52D) that I worked where I KNEW EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM. When I was still in Maintenance I dated a tail gunner, this was his crew. He had been with them for over a year when we started to date, and we dated for almost a year before he PCSed. The aircraft, 55-078, went down at the La Junta Range in Colorado on a night low-level bombing run, they were supposed to be a static display aircraft at an airshow that weekend back “east.”

James MacGregor (Jimmy-Mac) was the husband of my former Flight Commander when I was in Aircraft maintenance (22 Avionics Maintenance Squadron), We both went at the same time to Job Control and I then went on to the Command Post and retrained into the Command Control career Field.

Major Aydoner’s daughter was in my Brownie Girl Scout troop.

Cliff Duane was a crew chief (actually “third wiper,” a trainee crew chief) for the aircraft, and one of the guys I would have meals with sometimes in the chow hall when we were working the “overnight” shifts. Went to PME I with him.

Captain Eddleman was the EWO on the crew, a little odd, he was moonlighting as a college instructor on base.

Tim McFarland was the NEW gunner on the crew. He was from western Pennsylvania and the gunner I dated was his supervisor and his sponsor when he had PCSed in earlier that year. He was married, one son Patrick (who is a Senior Master Sergeant in the USAF now). They lived in the apartment behind the apartments were I rented. Some of the guys from the Squadron after the Official notification by the Squadron Commander, stopped by to have me go with them to help her, I wasn’t home, I was at work in the Command Post.

Bruce Shaffer was the crew chief of 55-078. Very wicked sense of humor, played pranks on the specialists, nearly died of mortification when I tumbled out of his aircraft when he moved my work stand from the open gunner’s hatch. He drove me to the ER. It's been so many years later, but I read his name I can still picture him and the goofy way he wore his ball cap for softball games.

Captain Wallace was “just married” that summer. I went to the wedding with their old gunner. His wife Heidi, was a lawyer in L.A. They had the “appearance” of the stereotype “yuppie-WASP" couple . But the furthest thing from it. Kendall was a third generation USAF officer, and a graduate from the USAFA. His wife’s notification came OVER THE RADIO DURING THE MORNING DRIVE, nearly caused an accident on I-10 near Diamond Bar. It seems a Riverside Press-Enterprise reporter called up the command post for the names, this was before all the next-of-kin were notified. Oh the CP didn’t give it out, she then called Base Ops and asked there, “said she was calling from the PA office” The airman at Base Ops not knowing any better released the names off the flight plan.

Major David Smith was active in the base Chapel programs. I taught CCD years later at another base with his widow (she had remarried).

Military Duty IS DANGEROUS, and military aviation is more so. Dying on a routine "airlift mission," or on a training mission, is the same as dying from enemy action.

April 3, 1996, If the date for these people looks familiar it’s because it is the same date that President Clinton’s friend, Ron Brown, died in a plane crash. There are a lot of underhanded crap with how this mission was put together, lots of “horsepower” from Washington D.C. insisting on things, some of it contrary to safety of flight. I supported the Accident Investigation Board. I knew Heidi, she was a friend of mine.

Ashley Davis

Tim Schafer

Gerald Aldrich

Robert Farrington Jr.

Shelly Kelly

Cheryl Turnege

Britt Simpkins

Heidi M. Kniupis

March 2003, Lt. Col. Walker Bowman – Died in a aircraft accident (A-10), post maintenance flight check. He was my boss, (Chief of the Operations Center) at Davis-Monthan AFB. His two young sons sent me a care package when I was deployed to Kuwait 1999-2000.

Dec 21, 1999, I was supposed to drive people to Kuwait City Airport to catch their “freedom Bird” flight home from their deployment to Ahmed Al Jaber Kuwait. But at midnight, the weather decision was that they would “fly in” via a C-130 flight. The C-130s were up at Ali Al Salem and did theater cargo and personnel deliveries. I had just talked to my controller at the command post on the radio, the flight was inbound. Since I was part of the “leadership team” (acting First Sergeant) I was expected to go and meet the new personnel when they in-processed. There was a noise in the distance. I was expecting my “arrival call” – nothing. I had a bad feeling as I was getting gear to go out, my controller had active the radio alerting net and announced an aircraft mishap” I ran my fasted mile ever, and made face-to-face notifications to the medical standby crew, the Group Commander, and the Intel and Comm people (they were on my route to the CP).

Three people died on that flight, dozens injured, more might have died if a certain MSgt Norris (yes, he is related to THAT Norris) hadn’t saved their lives. MSgt Norris was in the incoming Fire Chief.

Michael D. Geragosian

Benjamin T. Hall

Warren T. Willis

Sept 13, 1997, C-141 Crew Lost in a midair collision with a German military transport aircraft (they were flying formation back to Germany after an exercise in South Africa, the German Transport had the people and the USAF C-141 had the equipment) off the coast of Africa. I was the NCOIC of the Base Command Post at Ramstein AB Germany, we dispatched personnel for the search when the aircraft went missing and the recovery team. Our Wing Commander was the President of the Accident Investigation Board and I sent 5 of my troops down to support the operations.

Stacy Bryant

Gregory Cindrich

Robert Evans

Scott Roberts

Gary Bucknam

Justin Drager

Jason Ramsey

Peter Vallejo

Frankie Walker

Sometimes it isn't a shot fired, but a traffic accident after work.

July 23, 2002, Lt. Col. John K. Smith, He was the Chief of the Operations Center at Ramstein, died in a single car crash, after pulling a 14 hour overnight shift supporting operations at Ramstein AB, the family was getting ready to PCS back to the States to Travis AFB.

And lastly, a few fellow agents of my DH, who died from hostile action or at least very suspicious circumstances.

March 2, 1997 Dean Pulliam, active duty USAF OSI agent, Special Agent Pulliam was killed while stationed in Kuwait.

August 8, 2004, Rick A. Ulbright, USAF OSI Agent, polygraph specialist, died from injuries after a rocket attack on Kirkuk Air Base, Iraq

February 20, 2006, Daniel J. Kuhlmeier active duty AFOSI agent died in an IED explosion in Baghdad

June 5, 2007, two active duty AFOSI agents died in an IED explosion near Kirkirk

Matthew Joseph Kuglics

Ryan Andrew Balmer

November 1, 2007, three active duty AFOSI agents died in an IED explosion near Balad

David Wieger

Thomas A. Crowell

Nathan J. Schuldheiss

Oh I really wanted to rage and vent, but why give one asshat individual the ammo or the satisfaction. There were no other posts to support this one individual's viewpoint. So why bother. I can vent here, after all who cares?