This article was in the May 27, 2007 Parade Magazine.
Memorial Day Mission
This month, while other actors were glued to the TV ratings wars, CSI: NY's Gary Sinise was visiting our troops in Iraq. Just back, he's spending the emorial Day weekend in Washington and co-hosting tonight's National Memorial Day Concert, telecast on PBS.
Sinise, 52, first got involved with the military 25 years ago. His wife had two brothers in Vietnam: One was killed, the other scarred. "America took out its grief over Vietnam on the veterans, " says Sinise, an Oscar nominee as Lt. Dan, the Vietname officer who loses his legs in Forrest Gump. When U.S. troops were sent to Afghanistan and Iraq, he vowed to help. "They need to know they aren't forgotten,"says Sinise. He's visited three times and helped create Operation Iraqi Children, which sends kids' supplies for our troops to distribute. "They can pull into a village and hand out soccer balls." Sinise explains. For ways you can help, visit Parade.com.
This is my kind of Movie star! Thank you Mr. Sinise.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
When Congress says they Support our Troops what exactly does that mean? (A letter from my friend Lee)
Family & Friends,
I believe you will appreciate what the Congressman has to say about the present situation in Iraq from the perspective of a POW, soldier and legislator. Whatever your feelings may be on President Bush and his adminsitrations handling of the war in Iraq, the soldier is not the entity to be left out in the cold, to take the fall, to suffer the consequences. If the newly elected Congress believes that leaving Iraq is in the best interest of the citizens they represent and they prescribe leaving then say so...defund and bring the soldiers back home...that is within their constitutional perogatives. However, to suggest that a non-binding resolution and hamstringing the fighting capabilities of the commanders and soldiers on the ground is supporting the troops, then the world has been stood on it's head and "Work will set you free!" Those who support this strategy are cowards fearing the political fallout as the American public (as recent polls have suggested) really doesn't support removal of the troops or surrendering to the greater risk of Islamic extremism. Rather then deal with it forthrightly they choose to once again let the US Military be the fall guy. Yeah, "We support the troops!" is the biggest political lie of the "cut and run" crowd in Congress...no matter their political party. And don't ask me how I really feel, OK!
Subject: POW U.S. CONGRESSMAN SAM JOHNSON
To Our Troops We Must Remain Always Faithful
By Rep. Sam JohnsonFebruary 16, 2007
(Note: The following is the text of remarks delivered by Rep. Johnson on the floor of the House ofRepresentatives February 16, 2007)
You know, I flew 62 combat missions in the Korean War and 25 missions in the Vietnam War before being shot down.I had the privilege of serving in the United States Air Force for 29 years, attending the prestigious National War College, and commanding two air bases, among other things.
I mention these stories because I view the debate on the floor not just as a U.S. Congressman elected to serve thegood people of the Third District in Texas, but also through the lens of a life-long fighter pilot, student of war, a combat warrior, a leader of men, and a Prisoner of War.
Ironically, this week marks the anniversary that I started a new life - and my freedom from prison in Hanoi. I spent nearly seven years as a Prisoner of War in Vietnam, more than half of that time in solitary confinement. I flew out of Hanoi onFebruary 12, 1973 with other long-held Prisoners of War - weighing just 140 pounds. And tomorrow - 34 years ago, I had
my homecoming to Texas - a truly unspeakable blessing of freedom.
While in solitary confinement, my captors kept me in leg stocks, like the pilgrims... for 72 days... As you can imagine, they had to carry me out of the stocks because I couldn't walk. The following day, they put me in leg irons... for 2 ½ years. That's when you have a tight metal cuff around each ankle - with a foot-long bar connecting the legs.
I still have little feeling in my right arm and my right hand...and my body has never been the same since my nearly 2,500 days of captivity. But I will never let my physical wounds hold me back. Instead, I try to see the silver lining. I say that because in some way ... I'm living a dream...a hope I had for the future. "From April 16, 1966 to February 12, 1973 - I prayed
that I would return home to the loving embrace of my wife, Shirley, and my three kids, Bob, Gini, and Beverly...
And my fellow POWs and I clung to the hope of when - not if - we returned home. We would spend hours tapping on the adjoining cement walls about what we would do when we got home to America. We pledged to quit griping about the way the government was running the war in Vietnam and do something about it... We decided that we would run for office and
try to make America a better place for all.
So - little did I know back in my rat-infested 3 x 8 dark and filthy cell that 34 years after my departure from Hell on Earth...I would spend the anniversary of my release pleading for a House panel to back my measure to support and fully fund thetroops in harm's way....and that just days later I would be on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives surrounded by distinguished veterans urging Congress to support our troops to the hilt.
We POWs were still in Vietnam when Washington cut the funding for Vietnam. I know what it does to morale and missionsuccess. Words cannot fully describe the horrendous damage of the anti-American efforts against the war back home to the guys on the ground. Our captors would blare nasty recordings over the loud speaker of Americans protesting back home...tales
of Americans spitting on Vietnam veterans when they came home... and worse.
We must never, ever let that happen again. The pain inflicted by your country's indifference is tenfold that inflicted by your ruthless captors. Our troops - and their families - want, need and deserve the full support of the country - and the Congress. Moms and dads watching the news need to know that the Congress will not leave their sons and daughters in harm's way
without support.
Since the President announced his new plan for Iraq last month, there has been steady progress. He changed the rules of engagement and removed political protections. There are reports we wounded the number two of Al Qaeda and killed his deputy. Yes, Al Qaeda operates in Iraq. It's alleged that top radical jihadist Al-Sadr has fled Iraq - maybe to Iran. And Iraq's
closed its borders with Iran and Syria.
The President changed course and offered a new plan ...we are making progress. We
must seize the opportunity to move forward, not stifle future success.
Debating non-binding resolutions aimed at earning political points only destroys morale, stymies success, and emboldens the enemy. The grim reality is that this House measure is the first step to cutting funding of the troops...Just ask John Murtha about his 'slow-bleed' plan that hamstrings our troops in harm's way.
Now it's time to stand up for my friends who did not make it home and those who fought and died in Iraq - so I can keep my promise that when we got home we would quit griping about the war and do something positive about it...and we must not allow this Congress to leave these troops like the Congress left us.
Today, let my body serve as a brutal reminder that we must not repeat the mistakes of the past... instead learn from them. We must not cut funding for our troops. We must stick by them. We must support them all the way. ..To our troops we must remain...always faithful.
God bless you and I salute you all. Thank you.
Warmest regards,
Lee
I believe you will appreciate what the Congressman has to say about the present situation in Iraq from the perspective of a POW, soldier and legislator. Whatever your feelings may be on President Bush and his adminsitrations handling of the war in Iraq, the soldier is not the entity to be left out in the cold, to take the fall, to suffer the consequences. If the newly elected Congress believes that leaving Iraq is in the best interest of the citizens they represent and they prescribe leaving then say so...defund and bring the soldiers back home...that is within their constitutional perogatives. However, to suggest that a non-binding resolution and hamstringing the fighting capabilities of the commanders and soldiers on the ground is supporting the troops, then the world has been stood on it's head and "Work will set you free!" Those who support this strategy are cowards fearing the political fallout as the American public (as recent polls have suggested) really doesn't support removal of the troops or surrendering to the greater risk of Islamic extremism. Rather then deal with it forthrightly they choose to once again let the US Military be the fall guy. Yeah, "We support the troops!" is the biggest political lie of the "cut and run" crowd in Congress...no matter their political party. And don't ask me how I really feel, OK!
Subject: POW U.S. CONGRESSMAN SAM JOHNSON
To Our Troops We Must Remain Always Faithful
By Rep. Sam JohnsonFebruary 16, 2007
(Note: The following is the text of remarks delivered by Rep. Johnson on the floor of the House ofRepresentatives February 16, 2007)
You know, I flew 62 combat missions in the Korean War and 25 missions in the Vietnam War before being shot down.I had the privilege of serving in the United States Air Force for 29 years, attending the prestigious National War College, and commanding two air bases, among other things.
I mention these stories because I view the debate on the floor not just as a U.S. Congressman elected to serve thegood people of the Third District in Texas, but also through the lens of a life-long fighter pilot, student of war, a combat warrior, a leader of men, and a Prisoner of War.
Ironically, this week marks the anniversary that I started a new life - and my freedom from prison in Hanoi. I spent nearly seven years as a Prisoner of War in Vietnam, more than half of that time in solitary confinement. I flew out of Hanoi onFebruary 12, 1973 with other long-held Prisoners of War - weighing just 140 pounds. And tomorrow - 34 years ago, I had
my homecoming to Texas - a truly unspeakable blessing of freedom.
While in solitary confinement, my captors kept me in leg stocks, like the pilgrims... for 72 days... As you can imagine, they had to carry me out of the stocks because I couldn't walk. The following day, they put me in leg irons... for 2 ½ years. That's when you have a tight metal cuff around each ankle - with a foot-long bar connecting the legs.
I still have little feeling in my right arm and my right hand...and my body has never been the same since my nearly 2,500 days of captivity. But I will never let my physical wounds hold me back. Instead, I try to see the silver lining. I say that because in some way ... I'm living a dream...a hope I had for the future. "From April 16, 1966 to February 12, 1973 - I prayed
that I would return home to the loving embrace of my wife, Shirley, and my three kids, Bob, Gini, and Beverly...
And my fellow POWs and I clung to the hope of when - not if - we returned home. We would spend hours tapping on the adjoining cement walls about what we would do when we got home to America. We pledged to quit griping about the way the government was running the war in Vietnam and do something about it... We decided that we would run for office and
try to make America a better place for all.
So - little did I know back in my rat-infested 3 x 8 dark and filthy cell that 34 years after my departure from Hell on Earth...I would spend the anniversary of my release pleading for a House panel to back my measure to support and fully fund thetroops in harm's way....and that just days later I would be on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives surrounded by distinguished veterans urging Congress to support our troops to the hilt.
We POWs were still in Vietnam when Washington cut the funding for Vietnam. I know what it does to morale and missionsuccess. Words cannot fully describe the horrendous damage of the anti-American efforts against the war back home to the guys on the ground. Our captors would blare nasty recordings over the loud speaker of Americans protesting back home...tales
of Americans spitting on Vietnam veterans when they came home... and worse.
We must never, ever let that happen again. The pain inflicted by your country's indifference is tenfold that inflicted by your ruthless captors. Our troops - and their families - want, need and deserve the full support of the country - and the Congress. Moms and dads watching the news need to know that the Congress will not leave their sons and daughters in harm's way
without support.
Since the President announced his new plan for Iraq last month, there has been steady progress. He changed the rules of engagement and removed political protections. There are reports we wounded the number two of Al Qaeda and killed his deputy. Yes, Al Qaeda operates in Iraq. It's alleged that top radical jihadist Al-Sadr has fled Iraq - maybe to Iran. And Iraq's
closed its borders with Iran and Syria.
The President changed course and offered a new plan ...we are making progress. We
must seize the opportunity to move forward, not stifle future success.
Debating non-binding resolutions aimed at earning political points only destroys morale, stymies success, and emboldens the enemy. The grim reality is that this House measure is the first step to cutting funding of the troops...Just ask John Murtha about his 'slow-bleed' plan that hamstrings our troops in harm's way.
Now it's time to stand up for my friends who did not make it home and those who fought and died in Iraq - so I can keep my promise that when we got home we would quit griping about the war and do something positive about it...and we must not allow this Congress to leave these troops like the Congress left us.
Today, let my body serve as a brutal reminder that we must not repeat the mistakes of the past... instead learn from them. We must not cut funding for our troops. We must stick by them. We must support them all the way. ..To our troops we must remain...always faithful.
God bless you and I salute you all. Thank you.
Warmest regards,
Lee
If we pack up and leave Iraq the war is over, right? Wrong. Dead wrong.
6 charged with plot on Army post in N.J.
By WAYNE PARRY, Associated Press Writer
FORT DIX, N.J. - Six Islamic militants from Yugoslavia and the Middle East were arrested on charges of plotting to attack the Fort Dix Army post and "kill as many soldiers as possible authorities said Tuesday.
In conversations secretly recorded by an FBI informant over the past year, the men talked about killing in the name of Allah and attacking U.S. warships that might dock in Philadelphia, according an FBI criminal complaint.
"This was a serious plot put together by people who were intent on harming Americans," U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie said Tuesday. "We're very gratified federal law enforcement was able to catch these people before they acted and took innocent life."
One suspect reportedly spoke of using rocket-propelled grenades to kill at least 100 soldiers at a time, according to court documents.
"If you want to do anything here, there is Fort Dix and I don't want to exaggerate, and I assure you that you can hit an American base very easily," suspect Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer said in one conversation secretly recorded by a government informant, according to the criminal complaint.
"It doesn't matter to me whether I get locked up, arrested or get taken away," a suspect identified as Serdar Tatar said in another recorded conversation. "Or I die, it doesn't matter. I'm doing it in the name of Allah."
Another suspect, Eljvir Duka, was recorded saying: "In the end, when it comes to defending your religion, when someone is trying attacks your religion, your way of life, then you go jihad."
White House spokesman Tony Snow said Tuesday there is "no direct evidence" that the men had ties to international terrorism.
The FBI was tipped off in January 2006 when a shopkeeper alerted agents about a "disturbing" video he had been asked to copy onto a DVD, according to court documents. The video showed 10 men in their early 20s "shooting assault weapons at a firing range ... while calling for jihad and shouting in Arabic 'Allah Akbar' (God is great)," the complaint said.
Six of the 10 men on the tape were identified as those arrested in the plot. They were arrested Monday trying to buy automatic weapons from an FBI informant, officials said.
Christie said one of the suspects worked at Super Mario's Pizza in nearby Cookstown and delivered pizzas to the base.
"What concerns us is, obviously, they began conducting surveillance and weapons training in the woods and were discussing killing large numbers of soldiers," said Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd.
The six were scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Camden later Tuesday to face charges of conspiracy to kill U.S. servicemen, said Michael Drewniak, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey.
Four of the men were born in the former Yugoslavia, one in Jordan and one in Turkey, officials said. All had lived in the United States for years. Three were in the country illegally; two had green cards allowing them to stay permanently; the other is a U.S. citizen.
Besides Shnewer, Tatar and Eljvir Duka, the other men were identified in court papers as Dritan Duka and Shain Duka. Checks with Immigration and Customs Enforcement show that the Dukas were illegally in the U.S., according to FBI complaints unsealed with their arrests.
Five of the men lived in Cherry Hill, a Philadelphia suburb about 20 miles from Fort Dix.
"They were planning an attack on Fort Dix in which they would kill as many soldiers as possible," Drewniak said.
A law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity because documents in the case remain sealed, said the attack was stopped in the planning stages. The men also allegedly conducted surveillance at other area military institutions, including Fort Monmouth, a U.S. Army installation, the official said.
By March 2006, the group had been infiltrated by an informant who developed a relationship with Shnewer, according to court documents. The informant secretly recorded meetings in August in which Shnewer said he and the others were part of a group planning to attack a U.S. military base, the complaints said.
Shnewer named Fort Dix and a nearby Navy base, explaining that the group "could utilize six or seven jihadists to attack and kill at least one hundred soldiers by using rocket-propelled grenades" or other weapons, the complaints said. The Navy base was not named in the papers.
Fort Dix is used to train soldiers, particularly reservists. It also housed refugees from
Kosovo in 1999.
The base has been closed to the public since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and has heavily armed guards at entrances, yet the main road through neighboring Cookstown cuts through the base and is accessible to the public.
The description of the suspects as "Islamic militants" renewed fears in New Jersey's Muslim community. Hundreds of Muslim men from New Jersey were rounded up and detained by authorities in the months following the 2001 attacks, but none was connected to that plot.
"If these people did something, then they deserve to be punished to the fullest extent of the law," said Sohail Mohammed, a lawyer who represented many of the detainees. "But when the government says 'Islamic militants,' it sends a message to the public that Islam and militancy are synonymous."
"Don't equate actions with religion," he said.
___
Associated Press Writers Matt Apuzzo and Ben Feller in Washington, Geoff Mulvihill in Mount Laurel, Tom Hester Jr. in Trenton and Jeffrey Gold in Newark contributed to this story.
By WAYNE PARRY, Associated Press Writer
FORT DIX, N.J. - Six Islamic militants from Yugoslavia and the Middle East were arrested on charges of plotting to attack the Fort Dix Army post and "kill as many soldiers as possible authorities said Tuesday.
In conversations secretly recorded by an FBI informant over the past year, the men talked about killing in the name of Allah and attacking U.S. warships that might dock in Philadelphia, according an FBI criminal complaint.
"This was a serious plot put together by people who were intent on harming Americans," U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie said Tuesday. "We're very gratified federal law enforcement was able to catch these people before they acted and took innocent life."
One suspect reportedly spoke of using rocket-propelled grenades to kill at least 100 soldiers at a time, according to court documents.
"If you want to do anything here, there is Fort Dix and I don't want to exaggerate, and I assure you that you can hit an American base very easily," suspect Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer said in one conversation secretly recorded by a government informant, according to the criminal complaint.
"It doesn't matter to me whether I get locked up, arrested or get taken away," a suspect identified as Serdar Tatar said in another recorded conversation. "Or I die, it doesn't matter. I'm doing it in the name of Allah."
Another suspect, Eljvir Duka, was recorded saying: "In the end, when it comes to defending your religion, when someone is trying attacks your religion, your way of life, then you go jihad."
White House spokesman Tony Snow said Tuesday there is "no direct evidence" that the men had ties to international terrorism.
The FBI was tipped off in January 2006 when a shopkeeper alerted agents about a "disturbing" video he had been asked to copy onto a DVD, according to court documents. The video showed 10 men in their early 20s "shooting assault weapons at a firing range ... while calling for jihad and shouting in Arabic 'Allah Akbar' (God is great)," the complaint said.
Six of the 10 men on the tape were identified as those arrested in the plot. They were arrested Monday trying to buy automatic weapons from an FBI informant, officials said.
Christie said one of the suspects worked at Super Mario's Pizza in nearby Cookstown and delivered pizzas to the base.
"What concerns us is, obviously, they began conducting surveillance and weapons training in the woods and were discussing killing large numbers of soldiers," said Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd.
The six were scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Camden later Tuesday to face charges of conspiracy to kill U.S. servicemen, said Michael Drewniak, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in New Jersey.
Four of the men were born in the former Yugoslavia, one in Jordan and one in Turkey, officials said. All had lived in the United States for years. Three were in the country illegally; two had green cards allowing them to stay permanently; the other is a U.S. citizen.
Besides Shnewer, Tatar and Eljvir Duka, the other men were identified in court papers as Dritan Duka and Shain Duka. Checks with Immigration and Customs Enforcement show that the Dukas were illegally in the U.S., according to FBI complaints unsealed with their arrests.
Five of the men lived in Cherry Hill, a Philadelphia suburb about 20 miles from Fort Dix.
"They were planning an attack on Fort Dix in which they would kill as many soldiers as possible," Drewniak said.
A law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity because documents in the case remain sealed, said the attack was stopped in the planning stages. The men also allegedly conducted surveillance at other area military institutions, including Fort Monmouth, a U.S. Army installation, the official said.
By March 2006, the group had been infiltrated by an informant who developed a relationship with Shnewer, according to court documents. The informant secretly recorded meetings in August in which Shnewer said he and the others were part of a group planning to attack a U.S. military base, the complaints said.
Shnewer named Fort Dix and a nearby Navy base, explaining that the group "could utilize six or seven jihadists to attack and kill at least one hundred soldiers by using rocket-propelled grenades" or other weapons, the complaints said. The Navy base was not named in the papers.
Fort Dix is used to train soldiers, particularly reservists. It also housed refugees from
Kosovo in 1999.
The base has been closed to the public since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and has heavily armed guards at entrances, yet the main road through neighboring Cookstown cuts through the base and is accessible to the public.
The description of the suspects as "Islamic militants" renewed fears in New Jersey's Muslim community. Hundreds of Muslim men from New Jersey were rounded up and detained by authorities in the months following the 2001 attacks, but none was connected to that plot.
"If these people did something, then they deserve to be punished to the fullest extent of the law," said Sohail Mohammed, a lawyer who represented many of the detainees. "But when the government says 'Islamic militants,' it sends a message to the public that Islam and militancy are synonymous."
"Don't equate actions with religion," he said.
___
Associated Press Writers Matt Apuzzo and Ben Feller in Washington, Geoff Mulvihill in Mount Laurel, Tom Hester Jr. in Trenton and Jeffrey Gold in Newark contributed to this story.
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