http://www.usflag.org/service.flag.html
Our son serves today and at the completion of this deployment will have served 40 months in a combat zone.
He is in transportation work is 7 day a week 10 to 12 hour each day in support all front line troops
All of you out there with children know how I feel when our son goes to Iraq, you know because you may have sent a child to
college. The stress is just as bad for you as it is for me and my wife. No matter where, someone may hurt our children and no
matter how old they are they are still our little girl or boy.
Do you know what percent of our population of these United States are Military? One half of one Percent, with a growing population
of over 300,000,000 that comes to one point five million troopers.
Our son is at Ft Sill Oklahoma he is preparing for his 4th trip to that sandbox of death. We really need to pull out and spend that money on the working people of America. The people that got out of school at the bottom 50%, to hear the Corporate Democrats and Republican we do not matter.
Our President Obama got a rude awakening as I did. I always knew that the corporation ran America now we see it. Those 180 degree turns we see, that BP oil spill that fact that we are staying in Iraq. All this points to corporations making money and they are not going to kill the cash cow only our sons and daughters.
I better never hear anyone say we are fighting a good fight. Yea you and that mouse, as this war goes on I tire of it. The mangle bodies the dysfunctional mental attitude the raise of the suicide rate the breaking of the service family. The service family once the back bone of America now reduced to asking for handout "food stamps". Long deployments that separate mothers fathers and children the breaking of the unit all important to all Americans.
We are not treating our military family well. I ask you to write to you senators and representatives in asking for early retirement. The question asked by republicans is "how" will we pay for that early retirement. First if they had a member of there family going for the 4th time to Iraq they would pay for it. Have the families and members of the service paid enough, two three now the forth time before the breech.
Where were the republicans when we went into Iraq no matter who will pay. Who will pay our grand children, today we borrow $0.40 of every dollar we spend. But seriously who will pay the early retirement? They will pay because if they have reached 16 years of service and have spent 42 months in a "active" combat zone. They may spend another 4 years in the military and get another pay grade and another tour in Iraq. They will retire at a higher pay grade if they go out now we save money. Look at it no pay grade raise and when they retire we pay them less, that is 40% of there best 3 years. We need to let them out early.
So if you can write a short letter, no one will get back to you. Email them and you will still not get a reply, I do hope they are reading and will take into account that we are interested in this. The early retirement for those 24 plus months and one second of service in Iraq.
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Daniel
Inouye
http://inouye.senate.gov/Home/Home.cfm
no
email but go to his web
300 Ala Moana
Boulevard Room 7-212 Honolulu, Hawaii 96850-4975 Phone: 808-541-2542 Fax: 808-541-2549
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Dan Akaka
http://akaka.senate.gov/
again no email so call
300 Ala Moana Blvd., Rm.
3-106
Box 50144
Honolulu, HI 96850
Telephone: (808) 522-8970
Fax: (808) 545-4683
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| Mazie Hirono http://hirono.house.gov/ 300 Ala Moana Blvd. Honolulu, Hawai'i 96850 Phone:(808) 541-1986 Fax:(808) 538-0233 |
Charles K. Djou
http://djou.house.gov/
no address given
got his phone
Phone: (808) 541-2570 Fax: (808) 533-0133 |
On 30 October 65 I arrived in Vietnam and on 2 November 65 I was in my first fire fight. I had been trained by a "black" man a veteran of the Korean war he had survived the Battle at the Chosin Reservoir. While traveling on the USNS Barrett (14 day because the captain was sailing in reverse) from California to Vietnam he took my to the fan tail and showed me how to use the full automatic M-14A2. By the time I left Vietnam 29 October 66 I was carrying 1200 rounds of ammunition because the 3 most important things in a fire fight is Ammunition Ammunition Ammunition without Ammunition Ammunition Ammunition you are KIA, MIA or wounded and the Viet Cong did not take prisoners. I saw men dead because they did not have enough Ammunition Ammunition Ammunition, as I looked at them I wondered what will there families be going threw, when was the last time I wrote home. Unlike others who wanted to survive I thought of myself as "dead" not because I would be reckless but because I would let my training and instincts take over. Each day, every second I would be looking at everyone is he/she a friendly was that person coming at me "charlie". If an attack came where was the best place to jump was my M-14 at hand. Never less then arms length away that is where my M-14 was every waken second of 365 days knowing looking feeling for that wooden stock that gun metal always knowing were that 14 was. No one played silly games hide the weapon it was a serious time and a serious place. My heart still runs the anticipation still there but I am not there I am home. As my boy prepares to go. I hate war only those who have not been in war will praise war look at what they did to Colin Powell what a disgrace.
On 11 November 65 at the Battle Ap Bau Bang (http://www.flyarmy.org/panel/battle/65111200.HTM) we were on "Road Runner" operation clearing "Thunder Road" (highway 13). The Viet Cong set off a road side bomb, killing the lead M-151 then closed the trap by killing the rear "gun" truck. We lost a lot of good Engineers that day. Do you know that on a percent more combat engineers died on June 6 1944 then infantry. In the middle and along the line of trucks we got attacked we were in a fight for our lives the infantry was mix with truck drivers and eight hours later a relief column reach the rear of the convoy. I was down to one magazine I had been "foraging" among the dead Americans looking for Ammunition. I had picked up more ammunition but at the end of the day when relief showed up I was down to only one magazine we were getting ready for hand to hand. When I heard we re-enforcements had reached us, to this day I still think how close "death" came. I did not believe that we had more people till they came by me and I could see them. Them with more ammunition food then I had a sense of relief like a weight was lifted and we had done well. We looked at each other some with empty looks some with relief some shaking some crying. I was to go threw this again 4 or 5 times I know because I can cascade threw them in my minds eye. Stored forever there to come out like a surprise. At one time fighting against the images that are as alive today as they were back 65 to 66. Today I enjoy well on them in a different way but hunting none the less. Still the dead still the smell of death still the cries from fellow boys now men in an instant. I will no longer have these memories, when? when I finally lay down to sleep.
30 October 65 to 29 October 66
First Infantry Division First Engineer Battalion E Company
My brother also served in Vietnam. His son served in the Gulf War as a F-16 pilot
My father served in World War II
Pacific Campaign you know where the Marines and the Army went from island to island
My uncle Pat was a POW he was a civilian working on Wake Island at the out break
March 03 to April 04
Dec 04 to Dec 05
March 08 to June 09
500,000 will be our legacy OIF n OEF
What I think and a $1.03 will get me a small cup of coffee at McDonald's. But what I think is that
all the troopers that have 24 months in a combat zone should receive a 10% increase in retirement
benefits. I think that any trooper that has a Purple Heart and a CIB or CAB and 24 months. There
time to retire should be cut one for one, each month they serve in a combat zone. These troopers should
get one less month in the service and if they serve 40 months they should be able to retire 40 months early.
What that mean to me is that our son will be getting out early by 40 months. Wait a minute there
is no up side for me he will come home eat my food lay around all day dirty the dishes go to the beach leave
his room messy take the car no put gas, drive all over and become a one man gas shortage. Wait better he
stay in. Don't need two unless old men in one house, but I am better looking ask my wife.
Smile that was a funny