My endorsement of John McCain

Independence Day

Well, Independence Day has come and gone, so this post is a bit belated, but so was about half of my personal celebration, so I don't feel too guilty. I viewed (for the first time), the film Ike: Countdown to D-Day (starring Tom Selleck) last night and I was impressed overall with the quality and message of the film. My biggest gripe was the very negative portrayal of Gen. George Patton, whom I admire despite his admitted character flaws. Other than that, however, I enjoyed the depiction of Gen. Eisenhower's masterful coordination of the D-Day invasion. It reminded me of a couple of very important things about a war effort such as the one in the European theater. First, as "Ike" stressed in the film, such an effort requires that one commander exercise supreme authority over the planning and timing of the operation. Without such authority, as the film showed very well, the D-Day operation would have dissolved into chaos with warring generals and egos bickering over methods and power. Second, such authority must be exercised with great tact. Eisenhower wisely refused to allow his name and face to be paraded before the world, knowing that if he was to exert any control over the many generals under his command, he could not compete with them for public attention. Countdown also showed the blend of exerting operation authority and allowing input from subordinate commanders that is and was necessary for military success. Third, I was reminded of the fact that a commander in wartime is often a lonely man. "Ike" had friends in several of his subordinate generals, but he was alone in bearing the weight of making his final decisions regarding the execution of the invasion. And he was also alone in bearing not only the responsibility for the results, but also the responsibility for the thousand of lives that he was sending into harm's way.

To many today, war is, sadly, just a game, or even just a threat or method to be used to impose one nation's will on another. But as Countdown showed, it is much more than that. As Gen. W.T. Sherman put it, "War is hell." It is hell for the private who bleeds on the ground, and it is hell for the general who bears the responsibility for sending him there. Countdown shows this well, but it also shows that such hell is still sometimes necessary. As Eisenhower said several times in the film, Europe needed to be freed, and despite the sacrifice incumbent upon such a decision, he was willing to make it for the greater good.

This Independence Day weekend, let us all remember that freedom is truly never free. My thanks and prayers go out to all those who sacrifice to defend it.

A Pearl Harbor Day Follow-Up

I wanted to post this story, from army.mil, as a reminder on Pearl Harbor Day that the fight against the enemies of America and freedom continues today, and that there are still hundreds of thousands of heroes, such as Lt. Col. Gadson, who continue in the courageous tradition of valor for which we honor the soldiers, sailors, and airmen who were attacked in Hawaii 66 years ago.

Dec 05, 2007

By Elizabeth M. Lorge

(From left) Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. George Casey Jr., Superintendent of West Point Lt. Gen. Buster Hagenbeck, Lt. Col. Greg Gadson and Secretary of the Army Pete Geren leave the playing field after the coin toss at the 108th Army-Navy football game in Baltimore Dec 1. Lt. Col. Gadson is a former West Point football player who lost both legs to a roadside bomb in Baghdad. Photo by U.S. Military Academy

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Dec. 5, 2007) - A former West Point football player who was wounded in action joined the Army's top brass for the coin toss at Saturday's Army-Navy Game in Baltimore.Still learning to walk after an improvised-explosive device in Baghdad claimed both of his legs in May, Lt. Col. Greg Gadson marched onto the playing field, and he said it reminded him of the three times Army beat Navy when he was a player."You could feel the specialness of the game, you could feel the energy in the crowd. It did bring back memories of being a player," he said. "I think especially for a senior, who knows this is his last game, and you're part of a tradition and it's pretty awesome."I really was honored to go out there with some of the senior leaders in the Army and accompany them. It was an honor and a privilege that they afforded me and I was so appreciative. At the end of the day, it's a game, but those guys who are out there are going to be leaders in the Army and the Navy and the Marines in a short year and there's going to be a different set of stakes that they're playing for," he added.A field artillery officer, Lt. Col. Gadson attended West Point so he could play football, but fell in love with the Army, so much so that he decided to remain a Soldier in spite of his injuries."I believe I still have something to offer the Soldiers. That's as simple as I can say it. I love being a Soldier and right now I think I still have something to offer. As long as that's the case, I'm up for still being a Soldier," he said.Deployed with the 2nd Battalion, 32nd Field Artillery, Lt. Col. Gadson remembers the blast and thinking he didn't have his rifle. He remembers his first sergeant resuscitating him as he almost bled to death - he needed 70 pints of blood that first night alone - and he remembers hearing the helicopter coming to evacuate him, but little else until weeks later in Walter Reed Army Medical Center.Doctors had to amputate his left leg after infection caused his arteries to collapse. They were able to save his right leg, but Lt. Col. Gadson and his wife decided his quality of life would be better without it. He said his healing sped up very quickly after it was gone and he was finally able to leave intensive care. His right arm was also badly damaged and he needs at least two more surgeries in the next year. He still goes to Walter Reed for therapy every day.Although his injuries and recovery have, of course, been tough on his family, Lt. Col. Gadson said that they have ultimately brought his family closer together. "It's changed their life," he said. "But I think it's also brought us together. In tough times, there's really two ways to go, you can come together or you can go apart and I think it's been something that has brought us together. I am so proud of my kids because they have really embraced what has happened to our family."Learning to walk without knees or ankles has been challenging, but Lt. Col. Gadson credits prosthetics and the excellent therapists at Walter Reed, and looks at it like training for anything else."It's tough, but so is basic training, so is going through West Point, so is war. If you understand that what you're going through is going to be tough, then you prepare yourself for it and you go through it. There's no shortcuts," he said.Committing to walk on the field at the Army-Navy Game was also a good goal for Lt. Col. Gadson to work towards. "Once I committed to it I said, 'Well, I have to make sure I can walk,'" he said.He pushes himself, but he warns wounded Soldiers against pushing themselves too hard and trying to do anything before their bodies are ready."Just be patient and realize that you have had a significant event that's happened to you and take your time," he said. "I've found that that's really one of the most challenging things, to really be patient, kind of listen to my body. I'm not the same guy I was and if I push too hard I can do something to hurt myself and that's what I mean about being patient."Lt. Col. Gadson also wants Soldiers to know that the Army will take care of them."One thing I'm really proud of is how the Army has responded to me," he said. "As a commander, you put so much into trying to take care of Soldiers. And I found myself on the other end of being taken care of and it's been absolutely phenomenal."I just have to say that (Army medical personnel) are performing phenomenally. The tremendous trauma that my body's been through, I have nothing but great things to say. In other wars, I wouldn't have survived. The fact that three to five months after this happened, I'm in prosthetic limbs and I'm starting to learn how to walk again, is even hard for me to appreciate. These guys have really, really been doing some super work."

In Memory of an Important But Often Forgotten Day

Never forget...

"December 7, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan... Always will we remember the character of the onslaught against us. No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory... With confidence in our armed forces—with the unbounded determination of our people—we will gain the inevitable triumph—so help us God." —Franklin D. Roosevelt (quote copied from the PatriotPost, 07-49 Digest)

Saying "Happy Pearl Harbor Day" doesn't sound right, so let me just add, long may the faith, courage, resiliency, and military strength that brought us through that time continue and flourish in America, and may our country ever seek to weather the trials that face us with the conviction and spirit with which we faced the tragedy of December 7, 1941. My thanks go to those who rose up to defend us then, and to those who continue in our defence in that same courageous legacy.

Respecting Our Flag

Basic patriotism in the form of respecting our flag is something all to easy to forget.

A few days ago, I was shopping at a major retailer, and I happened to be near a service desk when an obviously upset employee came hurrying up. "Where are they?" I heard her ask the other lady manning the desk. Soon she was digging through the wastebasket beneath the desk and pulling out several small American flags---the small 4x6 variety on a stick that you see kids waving at parades. Apparently someone in management had ordered that these flags---excess stock or something---be thrown away. And that made this employee mad. "If you need to get rid of an American flag, you burn it," she said. "I don't care what they say, you don't throw an American flag away---management be damned." To be honest, I was a little surprised. How many Americans would have second thoughts about throwing away an American flag? In this era of wacky radicals and rioting foreign protesters burning American flags as a symbol of hate and disrespect, it's far too easy to forget that the respectful way to dispose of an American flag is to burn it with honor. In fact, I think that a lot of people forget the importance of the flag as a symbol of our country and of freedom. There is a reason why so many deliberately dishonor the American flag, and that's because of what it represents. Remembering to respect our flag, whether it's in how we display it, what we do with our hats when we see it, or how we dispose of it, is actually remembering to respect all that is great and good and free about our country, and remembering the sacrifices that Americans have made for over two centuries to keep it that way. So thank you to the patriotic lady who whose respect for our flag (and anger at its dishonor) reminded me of something very important that is often overlooked in our society. Long may the star-spangled banner wave "o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave."