Quadsville

I would have been a little over four years old when this happened. However I now understand more about hatred and  horror, while understanding more about Forgiveness and Peace.  How do WE support our troops....by learning that fighting wars is not a perfect science.

The small village of Oradour-sur-Glane, France, is the setting of unspeakable horror. During World War II, 642 residents were massacred by German soldiers as punishment for the French Resistance. The Germans had initially intended to target nearby Oradour-sur-Vayres and mistakenly invaded Oradour-sur-Glane on June 10th 1944. According to a survivor’s account, the men were herded into barns where they were shot in the legs so they would die more slowly. The women and children, who had been held in a church, all perished when their attempt to escape was met by machine-gun fire. The village was razed by the Germans afterward. Its ruins still stand today as a memorial to the dead and a reminder of the events that took place.

As I type this I am aware that I have German DNA in my viens, while cherishing the momeries of Serving in France, in the Army of the United States..and life goes on, one heartbeat at a time.....!

If you are going for a Sunday drive in Afghanistan  watch this video first. from AP.

http://video.ap.org/v/Legacy.aspx?partner=en-ap&g=6a9fd05c-98c8-4e70-9238-9af223e2b8d0&t=s60&p=ENAPus_ENAPus&&f=MATAUing

Chuck Larson Sr., Vice Chair of the Iowa Veterans for McCain, added, "My son and I have both spent time in the combat zone in Iraq, and I can say that in these dangerous times we cannot afford to have an inexperienced commander in chief. We need a leader with strong foreign policy and national security experience and that is Senator John McCain."

I only see one Presidential canidate with those qualifications.

A Senator whom I will not mention by name flies half way around the world to tell the amazed press corp. and the American people what we already knew last Christmas. Here from the Associated Press must be “The quote of the weak.” ( paraphrased )The senator was speaking in Amman, Jordan, during the first news conference of his highly publicized trip abroad.

 DUHHH summarized what he saw in Iraq this way: "There is security progress, but now we need a political solution." I cringe, when I wonder how many campaign dollars and US government dollars were spent to tell us what we already knew from a media stage thousands of miles away. And yet these candidates send us e-mails day after day asking for more funds, so they can make more silly comments in front of the media.

Our war on terror waged in Iraq for whatever reasons has not been perfect. No war in the last 100 years of American history has been fought perfectly. The people of Iraq have now found their courage to speak out against shadows in the night. One might assume after forty years of living under a fearful dictatorship it would take a while to begin trusting your neighbors again. The Iraq security Forces suffer the same doubts as they realign their allegiances and find sonority within their ranks.

The sad news I see happening is we will now try to turn our attention back to Afghanistan and raise the standard of living for another culture of people who have had their lifestyles changed by Osama bin Laden. The truth I will leave you to think about today…..because it is coming soon.

 Sunday is not just another day for some of our warriors and specialized civilian employees around this world, doing what they have been trained to do  to keep us free. The July 4th events might be "done and gone," but we still have loved ones out their in the wilderness  of lost values keeping us safe.

Take a moment today and send a note or call a warrior and thank them and tell them we miss them. It's a long road home for some, and near impossible for others, but just the thought  that those at home still care, will keep them alert and focused on what we as a nation  sent them to do in our stead. 

Would you like to see a great picture of Generational honor? A picture of two great men in uniform can be seen at this web-site called, RedShirtFridays.org  it's not about who started the war on terror or why.

It is about the men and women who stepped forward for the challange.

This is from the Iowa Lottery site and it fits into the information about our veterans and warriors

The first of the veterans-benefit games began sales Monday with the debut of “Stars & Stripes“ a $1 instant-scratch game with a red, white and blue theme. It will be followed by the pull-tab game “All American ” that begins sales July 21. The $1 tickets in that game will feature artwork of several patriotic symbols including the Liberty Bell, Statue of Liberty and Uncle Sam.

Rep. McKinley Bailey, D-Webster City, a U.S. Army veteran who served in Afghanistan and Iraq, was the main sponsor of the legislation that paved the way for Iowa Lottery games dedicated to veterans’ causes. He joined in Monday’s kick-off celebration for the games at Camp Dodge in Johnston.

Here is an interesting comment from Gen James Dubik who is retiring after 37 years

       "As I often said to my command in Baghdad, ‘Progress doesn’t result in no problems, it results in new problems,“’ This was in his written testimony. Iraq’s security forces have grown to 566,000 soldiers. As one would expect you may have many boots on the ground but it will take time to build the legendary leadership the boot soldiers can look up to and honor. Even Our U S FORCES have many differing ethnic and religious soldiers but Iraq has had to restart from day one. Many perhaps do not know which leader they would die for if asked.

The Iraqi military said the number of “terrorist attacks” in June declined 85 percent from the same period last year. I ask Why do we hear more about rebuilding the Iraq Security forces, rather than what is taking place in Afghanistan with multinational forces?

There’s a song called Sunday Morning coming down. Last week we were running on a patriotic high. We were all pumped up and thankful for our warrior’s services. Our thoughts were turning to who would make the better Commander-In-Chief to set policy for our Nation for the next four or eight years.

If any of you went to your place of worship and sang traditional patriotic hymns or songs, I ask how many times have you sang these words with gusto! And last week we were wondering if we have any part to play in the welfare of the rest of the world.

“ He has loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword”

“ He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat”

“He is sifting out the hearts of men before his judgment-seat.”

“ As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free. While God is marching on”

Some of us also sang these phrases:

“O beautiful for Heroes proved in liberating strife…who more than self their country loved, and mercy more than life.”

“O beautiful for patriot dream …. that sees beyond the years”

“Long may our land be right with freedom’s holy light.”

Now I ask; did we really mean to sing these words faithfully, or did we just want to out-sing the other guy?….The Sunday after is the Sunday of reality. How do we as a sovereign nation understand “freedom’s holy light?”  Is it a holy light, a terrorists nightmare, or a politician’s dream?

This is a subject that some will not want to read or talk about but it is a reality if we feel a war is (justified) or not. The older and more mature we get, the more thankful we are for those who have brought this day to pass. Our warriors return to us after seeing the Lord’s grace among war’s shattered lives and also the horror that all wish would not happen. Now here in Iowa’s rolling hills we have a final home for the warriors and their wives where they can find PEACE.

Many thanks to members of, The Iowa American Legion, who have quietly and respectfully worked with the Iowa legislature and the Iowa Department of Veterans Affairs to bring today’s Dedication Ceremony to reality.

The Iowa Veterans Cemetery (IVC) is the first federally funded construction of a state owned and operated veteran’s cemetery in the State of Iowa. It will provide sufficient burial space for up to 80,000 burials. The first of 76 scheduled interments will begin on July 7^th.

It is ten miles west of Des Moines and it can be found at Exit 113, and you will see that Interstate signs do mark the exit. If you go there it will be easy to find and it has a beautiful wall that can be seen from I-80 and it is just off Veterans Memorial Drive.