Interesting piece of history....and the quality of the video is very good considering how old it is.......Ulric Cross is in his 95th year, in excellent health,and quite the gentleman ...... he has had a very distinguished career after the war.
Check him out on Google if you are interested.......quite an icon, having received many awards both at home and abroad.
Subject: West Indians in Britian during WW2 ...Nice bit of history... This BBC program was of course long before Alva Clarke's "Calling the Caribbean" in second half of the 20th century at Bush House, BBC, London; long before Sir Learie was knighted, etc...Historic stuff....
What a unique way to thank you this thanksgiving....
XEROX IS DOING SOMETHING COOL
If you go to this web site, www.LetsSayThanks.com you can pick out a thank you card and Xerox will print it and it will be sent to a soldier that is currently serving in Iraq.
You can't pick out who gets it, but it will go to a member of the armed services.
It is FREE and it only takes a second.
Whether you are for or against the war, it's a wonderful way to say thank you.
We can never say enough thank you'sto our military!
New Horizon Commander hopes spirit of partnership continues To the people of Guyana, I am United States Air Force Lt. Col. Patrick Keenan, Commander of New Horizons Guyana. We have been in your country for several months now building a new nursery school at Bel Air, a medical clinic in East La Penitence, renovating the Timehri Nursery School and offering eight free medical and dental clinics.
As we are now finished and preparing to return to the United States I want to say, to all the men and women of this beautiful country, thank you!
You have embraced us since the day we arrived and been nothing but kind and welcoming. You are a beautiful people and your smiles we have all found infectious.
Everyone from the Guyana Defense Force to the Ministries of Education and Health to the local embassies, they have done everything they can to ensure this mission was met with 100% success and I am very grateful.
Even though we came here to build something for the Guyanese people, I assure you, we will be taking back much more – friendships and memories that will last a lifetime.
Thank you all so much and hope the spirit of partnership will continue, as we continue to grow and flourish in our camaraderie! LT COL PATRICK KEENAN New Horizons Guyana Commander
Once again another great mission accomplished by the United States Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen who participated in the New Horizons Guyana project to provide for the children in Guyana. All should be proud of this mission. For more information on this project please refer to Facebook.
The Warrior Creed by Humphrey seems appropriate here:
Wherever I go, everyone is a little bit safer because I am there. Wherever I am, anyone in need has a friend. Whenever I return home, everyone is happy I am there.
RE: Soldier's stories: Poem "Friends Are Born Not Made."
Join Date: 06/04/02
Posts: 645
Jovita, no apologies necessary. You will now have to be patient with me because I have no recollection of the subject so allow me the time to review and I promise to respond appropriately. Know this I have no problems with opposing opinions at all and rather enjoy them. I also agree that wisdom is not gained in academic institutions and very often in the "struggles and pain".....but it requires sincere reflection and dogged determination. To put it more bluntly, it takes time and effort.
RE: Soldier's stories: Poem "Friends Are Born Not Made."
Join Date: 08/12/05
Posts: 7
Carol,
Sorry I did not respond to your questions noted above. At first I was wary of your motives but time got away from me as my responsibilities needed my attention and this had to be put on the back-burner for the time being. So again, I am sorry getting back to you so late.
Yes, I do have a problem with that poem and anything written or done in that vein. As far as whether I mind your asking me if I live in America, once again I am not privy to your motives so in the interest of openness and goodwill my response is "what difference does it make?" I think we need to listen to other people, whether they live in the slums of Georgetown, the penthouses of Manhattan or the alleyways of Calcutta. The facts do not change based on where one lives. There is much sense in the words of Desiderata, "...Speak your truth quietly and clearly and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant they too have their story." The marine writing that poem had his chance to speak and we now have to listen to those who don't agree with it regardless of where they live. I think wisdom is not necessarily gained in academic institutions but very often in the struggles and pain of oppression and injustice and more especially living the gospel message.
The following story is one to be proud of.NB: What this story neglects to state is thatSergeant Major is the ninth and highest enlisted rank in the United States Marine Corp.Accordingly, I am honored for his service and will take this opportunity to wish him a truly safe deployment to Iraq and a safe return home.
"CaribWorldNews, NEW YORK, NY, Mon. April 27, 2009:
As the United States military prepares for a full withdrawal of combat troops in Iraq by September 2010, a high-ranking Guyanese national in the Marines will be completing his third and final tour in the Middle Eastern country, CaribWorldNews has learnt.
Sgt. Major Derrick Smith is set to be deployed today back to Iraq. A strong supporter of the military and President Obama, Sgt. Major Smith applauds his administration’s decision last month to begin a military drawdown in Iraq.
`I believe it’s time to give responsibilities back to the Iraqi people,` Sgt. Major Smith told CWNN exclusively Saturday. `I’m very optimistic. There’s been tremendous progress in terms of rebuilding infrastructure and giving land back to people.`
Smith was one of the first soldiers to be deployed to Iraq in 2003 at the start of the war. He is responsible for training some 900 soldiers and maintaining the welfare of their families.
Now that military attention has shifted to Afghanistan in the fight against terrorism, Sgt. Major Smith of Brooklyn agrees that an increase in combat troops is needed.
`Whatever is required,` said Sgt. Major Smith. `If sending more troops to Afghanistan will help, I’m all for it.`
Sgt. Major Smith has been in the United States Marines for 26 years. When he is not serving as a reservist, he works as a manager at a National Grid facility in New York. - By Djenny Passe Rodriguez/CWNN NY"
A Joint Strike Fighter took off today for the first time with a U.S. Marine at the controls.
Maj. Joseph Bachmann, a Marine test pilot, flew an F-35A for an hour and 20 minutes from a Lockheed Martin facility in Fort Worth, Texas. The F-35 is supposed to enter operational service with the Marines in 2012; the service has already picked a cadre of instructor pilots to start training at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., this the summer.
The flight, Bachmann said, "was badass."
According to Bachmann, "The airplane literally leapt off the ground – it didn’t need much coaxing. All the maneuvers I asked it to do, it more than met."
The plane he flew is not the aircraft the Marine Corps wants to acquire, though. The service plans on acquiring the F-35B, a short takeoff and vertical landing variant of the aircraft that will eventually replace F/A-18 Hornet, AV-8B Harrier II and EA-6B Prowler. Bachmann is part of the test team that will do the work to get to the first "hover" of the F-35B.
Bachmann, who served two fleet Harrier tours and worked as a Forward Air Controller in between -- will be the government test pilot as the developers continue to do ground and flight tests with the STOVL airplane. But even as the test program continues, the Government Accountability Office is worried about the potential financial risks of the Joint Strike Fighter procurement.
A new GAO report says that the Pentagon's plans to accelerate JSF procurement could cost an additional $33.4 billion over the next several fiscal years. "Procuring large numbers of production jets while still working to deliver test jets and mature manufacturing processes does not seem prudent, and looming plans to accelerate procurement will be difficult to achieve cost effectively," the agency warned.
Karl has an opinion that is shared not only by people all over the world but many Americans I have come into contact with and I too, wish to see the US out of Guyana.
First they want to ship all their trash to Guyana as they are doing right now to so many countries, especially African countries, and it does not stop there they send their trash to Guyana in many other ways which bring me to the story today of the US government extraditing a German guard (now US citizen) who worked at one of Hitler's concentration camp, to Austria. Not just for the "crimes" he is accused of commiting, but for not telling the truth on his application/interview when he immigrated to the US. (I hope Bagdat Jagdeo extradites all the Americans who are felons and lied on their applications to go to Guyana, commiting crimes of drug trafficing, etc., in record numbers.)
What gets me is they have no intentions of trying or deporting Bush/Cheney and the like, along with the many US Marines and soldiers who commited such atrocities in Iraq, Afganistan, Somalia, Haiti, the Congo and the other countries subject to US oppression for the same crimes, but an 80-year old man living here contributing to the welfare, war-machine US system is fair game.
This is in keeping with US mode-of-operation. They usually prey on the old, the weak, the uneducated, the poor and the homeless. --- See here Saddam, let us make sure you have no weapons of mass distruction and then we will bomb you off the face of the earth. And besides, we don't have to stand over you with a gun, (as the 80-year old guard did in Germany where he was exposed to possible retaliation of the people he was guarding), all we have to do is sit in an air-conditioned office in Las Vegas (and elsewhere) and using remote-control, drop bombs and missiles to kill those threatening US interests. ---
It is so sickening!!!! It begs the question, where is the Christrian values of the "sancity of life", the family values, the so-called justice, and the liberty , freedom and "honor" the military claims it has and is fighting for?
As they say in Guyana, "you can fool all of the people some of the time, but you can't fool some of the people all of the time." I hope the American people wake up to the double-standards and destruction they are causing in this country and all around the world.
RE: Soldier's stories: Poem "Friends Are Born Not Made."
Join Date: 06/04/02
Posts: 645
Jovita, good morning! I am a little slow today so bear with me. I don' think I have read the poem "Friends are born not made" so will not comment on it until such time. Also, if you don't mind my asking. Do you presently reside in America? Do you have a problem with all the poems circulated regarding the soldiers or just the one you referenced?
Soldier's stories: Poem "Friends Are Born Not Made."
Join Date: 08/12/05
Posts: 7
First, I want to thank Parmanand Sukhu for this article on Phagwah.
It is always good to see how other people celebrate their Holy days. If we look at the things we have in common instead of the things that are different, we can find much common ground in which to live our lives in peace.
As far as the things I read on the soldier's stories topic on the gtlime website I want to respectfully share my thoughs with you. I never want to take the hope that soldiers' families have when they share the poems, letters, etc from their loved ones, but it would be disingenious of me to pretend that what they are saying is the truth. Looking at the poem someone wants to send around "Friends are born not made," is a perfect example.
I feel sorry for both the marine and his family because they live under the illusion that they are goint to fight for "our freedom," our "right to protest," etc. In actuality they went there to fight for the right of corporate America to plunge and pillage other countries for monitary profit/greed, empire building, and revenge/hatred. These people will never get the message because they believe totally that the oil and minerals and stratigic locations around the world belongs to them and they have the right to take it by whatever means. I feel sorry for them because they can fool themselves for the rest of their lives while the truth of the matter is immaterial to them.
I do pray for the troops, especially their families especially, because they will never accept the fact that what their loved ones are doing is wrong. It really is sad. I pray that God have mercy on them for all the hatred and destruction they have spread around the world. Someone said "everyone wants to go to heaven but noone want to die" and for all these people it is only when they die they can finally embrace the truth, God's Truth. The marine did not put into his poem the slogans and chants the marines practiced during their training to kill because it would never make it around the world.
Personally, I have no desire to continue this charade and spread lies and propoganda so I won't be sending it to anyone. My desire is to spread truth, love and compassion because it is the Way Jesus came to show us. I want to follow that Way and invite everyone to do the same, including every marine and all their family and friends. As Jesus said, what does it mean if you gain the whole world and loses your soul. America has lost its soul and the sad part is that they will never believe it.
Iraq War combat veteran Dave McBee. McBee, who served two tours of duty in Iraq, suffers from PTSD and lives in a homeless shelter. (Photo: Steven Senne / AP)
In this bicentennial year of Abraham Lincoln's birth, I recently was rereading part of Doris Kearns Goodwin's epic history, "Team of Rivals." Once again it was stunning to see the number of casualties during the Civil War, the dead and wounded in four years of fighting exponentially outnumbering the American men and women killed and wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan over six and a half years of combat.
On both sides of the Civil War, 618,000 were killed, although some estimate as many as 700,000. In just the three days of the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1863 - more than 51,000 dead and wounded. Chickamauga, Georgia, two days, September 1963, nearly 35,000. Chancellorsville, Virginia, four days, May 1863, more than 30,000. And on and on.
"The war took young, healthy men and rapidly, often instantly, destroyed them with disease or injury," Drew Gilpin Faust notes in her 2008 book, "The Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War." "... Loss became commonplace; death was no longer encountered individually; death's threat, its proximity and its actuality became the most widely shared of the war's experiences."
Up until that time, Faust writes, the US Army had neither regular burial details nor grave-registration units. Such duties "seemed always to be an act of improvisation." Often the townspeople in or near a battleground wound up with the task. Many of the enlisted went unidentified, their bodies hastily placed in mass graves for fear of disease.
Contrast that with the painstaking care given each of the dead today when they arrive from Iraq or Afghanistan at the Carson Center for Mortuary Affairs, the joint military facility headquartered at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. Bodies and personal effects are thoroughly washed and cleansed, dress uniforms are individually tailored for the corpse, even the individual's wristwatch is carefully set to the time at the location where they fell. When each body is ready to leave Dover, all the service personnel at the mortuary stop what they're doing and form a line along the driveway, giving a slow, ceremonial salute as the hearse passes by.
I learned this a few weeks ago, when I happened on the telecast of the HBO made-for-TV movie, "Taking Chance," the true story of Marine Lt. Col. Michael Strobl - played in the film by Kevin Bacon - who in 2004 escorted the body of Lance Corporal Chance Phelps, killed in Al Anbar Province, Iraq, to its final resting place in Dubois, Wyoming.
I knew about the film but hadn't made plans to watch it. Nonetheless, coming upon it by accident, I was totally pulled in by the eloquent simplicity of the script, its attention to detail and lack of melodrama, the poignancy of Strobl's and Phelps's stories and the people "they" meet as Strobl accompanies the body on its final, cross-country journey. (You can continue to see the film through this month, at various times, well worth the fewer than 90 minutes it takes to view. Check the schedule at HBO.com.)
Coincidentally, the film's release came at the same time as the Pentagon's announcement that it was lifting the ban on photographs and videos of bodies arriving at Dover, a proscription that had been in place since the first Gulf War in 1991. A similar renewed openness is taking place as the military and the Department of Veterans Affairs become more candid about suicide and PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder.
Alarmed by the increasing rate of suicide, the Army has begun releasing monthly numbers, in addition to the annual reports produced in the past. 2008 was a record high - 128 confirmed suicides and 15 under investigation. The rate has been increasing steadily since 2004.
Last month there were 18 suspected suicides, up from 11 the previous year. In January there were 24, up from five in January 2008. According to The Associated Press, "Usually the vast majority of suspected suicides are eventually confirmed, and if that holds true it would mean that self-inflicted deaths surpassed the 16 combat deaths [in January] reported in all branches of the armed forces in Iraq, Afghanistan and other nations considered part of the global war on terror."
The Army's suicide rate is now exceeding the US civilian rate, for the first time since the military began keeping records in 1980.
"Why do the numbers keep going up?" Army Secretary Peter Geren asked rhetorically at a press conference last month. "We cannot tell you."
Experts say PTSD is a big reason - the RAND Center for Military Health Policy Research estimates that 19 percent of all the troops who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan suffer from it - some 300,000 men and women.
Others point to the high rate of redeployment. According to a new report in the Boston Phoenix newspaper, "With the number of personnel that have served in the two theaters reaching nearly 1.8 million, critics estimate that one-third have served multiple deployments." With that redeployment come incredible stress and anxiety, not only on the battlefield but back home, where marriages and other relationships collapse from the strain.
This past fall, the Army announced a $50 million, five-year joint study of suicide with the National Institute of Mental Health. And this week, the service will be wrapping up a month-long training program to help soldiers recognize suicidal behaviors in their comrades.
But much more needs to be done. "We keep getting studies," Rep. John Murtha, chair of the House Defense Appropriations Committee, said at a March 3 hearing. "That's the problem with the Defense Department - they study it to death."
What's more, according to an Army Medical Department's 2008 report, 33 percent of the troops in Afghanistan and 21.8 percent in Iraq say when it comes to mental health, their leaders discourage them from seeking help.
That has to stop. We must treat the living as respectfully as we do the dead.
And yet another success story. Those darn marines they just seem to pop up everywhere..... You just have to love them.
USS Kearsarge Medical Team Saves Moruca Girl ...helicopter was blessing in disguise - brother Source: Kaieteur News (Guyana) 11/22/2008 This past Tuesday, November 18, pilots from the U.S. Marine Heavy Helicopter (HMH) Squadron 464, currently embarked aboard the USS Kearsarge off the coast of Guyana, rendered emergency transport assistance to fifteen-year-old Shellon Abrams of Moruca, who was suffering from acute appendicitis.
It turned out that the trip - from Kumaka District Hospital in Santa Rosa to St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Georgetown - probably saved her life.
"When we got to the hospital here, they gave her further testing, and we found out that her appendix was ruptured," said Sherwin Abrams, Shellon's brother. Because she was in a location suitable for an appendectomy, Shellon could be prepped for surgery immediately.
"She was very scared when she found out she would need surgery," said Dr. Surendra Persaud, general surgeon at St Joseph's Mercy Hospital. "A ruptured appendix is a life-threatening problem if not dealt with immediately. The nurses did what they could to help; they held her hand and tried their best to comfort her."
After an hour in the operating room, Abrams was moved into recovery, where family could check in on her. "Before and during the surgery I was very anxious," said Sherwin. "After she came out, I was so thrilled to see that everything went well. She was still in a little pain, but I could tell she was feeling much better just by looking at her."
"The Kearsarge medical team was a great help," said Dr. Persaud. "If Shellon was not brought here by the American helicopters, she would have been forced to come by boat. That would have taken a lot more time, and her condition would have become much worse."
Sherwin knows his sister was lucky to receive the treatment in such a timely manner. "I want to thank everyone involved in my sister's treatment," he said. "The American military and all of the doctors, everyone was very professional. Now we can go home with no worries about her health."
Still weak from the surgery, Abrams was able to say one thing. "The helicopter ride was fun, and I am really looking forward to going home."
The Kearsarge departs Guyana today, having spent almost two weeks in Guyana.
Please don't delete this until you sendit on,Let's send it around the world. FRIENDS ARE BORN,NOT MADE This is a poem being sent from a Marine to his Dad.For those who take the time to read it,you'll see a letter from him to his dad at the bottom.It makes you truly thankfulfor not only the Marines,but ALL of our troops. THE MARINE We all came together, Both young and old To fight for our freedom, To stand and be bold. In the midst of all evil, We stand our ground, And we protect our country From all terror around. Peace and not war, Is what some people say. But I'll give my life, So you can live the American way. I give you the right To talk of your peace. To stand in your groups, and protest in our streets. But still I fight on, I don't bitch, I don't whine. I'm just one of the people Who is doing your time. I'm harder than nails, Stronger than any machine. I'm the immortal soldier, I'm a U.S. MARINE! So stand in my shoes, And leave from your home. Fight for the people who hate you, With the protests they've shown. Fight for the stranger, Fight for the young. So they all may have, The greatest freedom you've won Fight for the sick, Fight for the poor Fight for the cripple, Who lives next door. But when your time comes, Do what I've done. For if you stand up for freedom, You'll stand when the fight's done By: Corporal Aaron M. Gilbert, US Marine Corps USS SAIPAN, PERSIAN GULF March 23, 2003 Hey Dad, Do me a favor and label this 'The Marine' and send it to everybody on your email list.Even leave this letter in it.I want this rolling all over the US ;I want every home reading it. Every eye seeing it. And every heart to feel it. So can you please send this for me? I would but my email time isn't that longand I don't have much time anyway. You know what Dad?I wondered what it would be like to truly understandwhat JFK said in His inaugural speech.'When the time comes to lay down my life for my country, I do not cower from this responsibility.I welcome it.' Well, now I know.And I do. Dad, I welcome the opportunity to do what I do. Even though I have left behind a beautiful wife, and I will miss the birth of our first born child, I would do it 70 times over to fight for the place that God has made for my home.I love you all and I miss you very much.I wish I could be there when Sandi has our baby,but tell her that I love her, and Lord willing,I will be coming home soon.Give Mom a great big hug from me and give one to yourself too. Aaron
Please let this marine (and all our military)know we care by passing his poem onto your friendseven if you don't usually take time to forward mail...do it this time! Thanks, Let's help Aaron's dad spread the word ...
ORLANDO, Fla., Nov. 5, 2008 – Basketball legend and avid motorcyclist Michael Jordan is the latest high-profile celebrity to team up with the National Guard.
Jordan and Lt. Gen. Clyde Vaughn, director of the Army National Guard, unveiled the 2009 No. 23 National Guard Michael Jordan Motor Sports Superbike to more than 2,100 cheering citizen-soldiers gathered for a training workshop here last month.
Music star Kid Rock, who also appeared at the recruiting event, joked about Jordan’s celebrity stature. “Who decided to put me on after Michael Jordan?” he demanded to know, before explaining the celebrity pecking order. “It goes like this: Actors. Sports stars. Rock stars. Michael Jordan.”
The professional closed-course motorcycle road racing team that Jordan has owned since 2004 competes in the American Motorcyclist Association’s superbike class. Jordan joins a National Guard celebrity “A” list that also includes Kid Rock, NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the rock group 3 Doors Down.
“These people associate themselves with the ‘best-in’ categories, and that talks about what the National Guard is,” said Army Col. Mike Jones, chief of the Army Guard’s strength maintenance division, who has presided over a historic recruiting surge that motivated other services to adopt the Army Guard’s recruiting methods when the component’s numbers eclipsed its congressionally authorized end-strength.
When Michael Jordan’s older brother, James, retired in 2006 as command sergeant major of the 18th Airborne Corps’ 35th Signal Brigade – the only airborne signal brigade – he told the Associated Press, “The Army was my life. That’s why I dedicated myself to it. I felt I could be very successful in it. It didn’t require me to be [six feet tall]. It just required me to be physically fit.”
James Jordan’s career increases Michael Jordan’s empathy with citizen-soldiers, the basketball legend said. “He’s spoken very highly about the armed services,” Michael Jordan said. “Some of the lessons he’s learned, he’s passed on not just to me, but to my brothers and sisters and everybody that has come into contact with him. I live vicariously through him.”
Michael Jordan’s been a motorcycle enthusiast since he rode his first dirt bike at about the age of 6. He committed to AMA racing after his third retirement as a professional athlete. “Once I saw it, I became a great fan,” he said.
Aaron Yates joined Michael Jordan Motor Sports in 2007, and on Aug. 31 handed the basketball superstar his first AMA Superstock championship.
“Winning means a lot,” Jordan said. “You put forth a lot of hard work and dedication. You start the season off with a lot of goals. You go through disappointments in the course of the season, and at the end of the year when you finally step up to that podium and win the championship, nothing’s more gratifying.”
Jordan looked out at the 2,100 citizen-soldiers who gave him a standing ovation here. “I’ve represented my country a couple of times,” he told the soldiers. “And you guys have represented me.”
Yet again another great soldier story even though I am a little late in posting. This was the largest re-enlistment ever held in military history. The ceremony was held on the 4th of July, 2008 at Al Faw Palace, Baghdad, Iraq.
Our soldiers have got to be the best in the world and that is why it is so important that as a nation we ensure that our government hold true to promises and not cut benefits to the vets; grant them full access to VA treatment; ensure that suicide is not the solution to their pain; must never again be sent to war ill-equipped; and always allowed to vote.
Following are pictures of our soldiers re-enlisting to stay in Iraq and regardless of their reasons, beit to take advantage of school or loving what they do or for other reasons unknown to us, this re-enlistment for me speaks to commitment, dedication and the morale of our soldiers and affirms the fact that they want to be a part of a great team and more so that age-old saying "soldiers taking care of soldiers". They share with each other, they look out for each other and they bleed for each other.
Yes, I am proud of them, each and everyone of them. Our soldiers don't have the luxury afforded us. They don't get to decide where they go and what battles they fight they merely do what is asked of them.
In return I would love to tell you who to vote for but will stop short and merely say - PLEASE VOTE.
Colonel Brian Chin hands over software, donated by the Toronto Alumni to the school, to Head Prefect Nikita Clementson
Yesterday, Colonel Brian Chin, an old student of St Stanislaus College, donated software and computer equipment to the school. Colonel Brian Chin, who entered Saint Stanislaus College in 1975, was recently elevated to the rank of Colonel in the US Marines. He served in Iraq and Korea, and is now working in the Pentagon. In showing its appreciation, the College Association presented Colonel Chin with a plaque in recognition of his outstanding achievements and the honour that he brought to the college. Present at the handing over ceremony were several of his friends who attended the school while he was there, among them Dean and Karen Whitehead from Antigua, Camille De Groot, Robin Low and local attorney-at-law Nigel Hughes. Colonel Chin exhorted the children to enjoy their period at Saints, as it was a fine institution, and he wished he could exchange places with them. He urged the fifth formers to provide leadership to the rest of the school, and to ensure that the school and its equipment were left intact so that another generation could benefit. The ceremony was chaired by Nigel Hughes, President of the Saint Stanislaus College Association, and the plaque was handed over by Camille De Groot, a member of the Association’s executive. Mr. Hughes paid tribute to the teachers for the outstanding job they had done, which led Saints to win the coveted prize of most improved secondary school in 2008. Special tribute was also paid to Mr. Christopher Fernandes, Chairman of the Board of Governors.
Last week I circulated a release from IAVA which promised to provide a report this week showing which one of the Senators made the grade. Well here goes. A very simple process go to Veteranreportcard. Put in the states for each respective candidate and surprise yourself. When time permits I will post the results. A good day to all.
Today, IAVA Action is releasing the 2008 Congressional Report Card, grading every member of the House of Representatives and the Senate on crucial votes that affected the lives of veterans and their families. As an IAVA Supporter, you get to see the Report Card first.
This session of Congress has passed historic legislation, including the new GI Bill and record funding for the Veterans Administration. Over 100 members of Congress, representing both parties, received an A+ or an A from IAVA Action for consistently voting in favor of our members.
Others failed to put their money where their mouth was. Several refused to vote in favor of expanding educational benefits for our newest generation of veterans, or denied servicemembers access to mandatory Traumatic Brain Injury screenings both pre- and post-deployment. IAVA Action is holding those representatives accountable for their votes against veterans.
Spread the word about these important grades- this is something every American should see. At VeteranReportCard.org, you can write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper, or tell your friends about the 2008 Congressional Report Card in less than a minute.
IAVA Action is keeping our nation's lawmakers honest, and ensuring that veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan remain a priority in Washington, DC. None of this would be possible without your generous support.
Thank you for standing up for our newest generation of veterans.
Sincerely,
Paul Rieckhoff Iraq Veteran Executive Director Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
Last week, we asked for your urgent support. Thanks to your help, IAVA won!
A politically-motivated, last minute legal challenge in the state of Ohio was threatening the right to vote of thousands of veterans and deployed troops. IAVA filed a court brief to make sure the absentee ballot process remained as clear and simple as possible, but we needed you to stand up with us and protect our democracy.
You stepped up to the challenge and supported our fight. In a matter of days, over 8,000 IAVA Supporters took action by adding their names to a petition in favor of keeping the law as it stands.
On Monday, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled in our favor. This ruling is great news- not just for veterans and troops from Ohio, but for everyone who plans to file an absentee ballot in this crucial election. We fought for veterans and troops, and because of your quick response, we won.
We kept them honest in Ohio, and next week, we'll be keeping them honest in Washington, DC. On October 7th, IAVA will release our 2008 Congressional Report Card. Just as we did in 2006, we will be giving every US Senator and Representative a letter grade based on how they voted on several key veterans' issues, including the new GI Bill. You will be the first to know who has been supporting veterans in our nation's capitol.
Some Americans watching tonight's Presidential debate may not have the opportunity to cast a vote for their candidate: troops and veterans from Ohio. Right now, a legal fight in Ohio threatens the right of servicemembers and veterans to cast their votes with absentee ballots. IAVA has filed a brief asking the Ohio Supreme Court to protect the voting rights of all citizens, and we need your support. Add your name to IAVA's petition, demanding that the state of Ohio count all the votes of servicemembers and vets.
As the law stands now, citizens must be registered to vote for 30 days before the election, which allows voters to register and submit an absentee ballot at the same time, as long as it happens 30 days before the election. A lawsuit brought against the Ohio Secretary of State is trying to prevent the two actions from happening at the same time. If the law is changed, thousands of veterans and active duty troops could be disenfranchised.
Our troops serving overseas could be denied the very freedoms they are fighting so hard to defend. We hope the court in Ohio rejects this last minute, politically-motivated ploy that could complicate the voting process for our veterans and deployed soldiers.
This is not a partisan matter. Regardless of who they cast their ballots for, thousands of servicemen and women could find their votes thrown out. We owe these and all servicemembers an absentee voting process that is fair, predictable, and clear. Help fight this threat to our democracy.
Thank you for standing with us.
Sincerely,
Paul Rieckhoff
Iraq Veteran Executive Director Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
Spoke to Brian Chin while intransit and he dictated the following message:
"Thanks Peter, Valerie and Nadia, I'm very thankful for the opportunities I have had, and I relish the unique nature of the way I can serve my country and community. As Guyanese, we all bring a lot to the U.S. table. Even the keen, albeit different interests we take in the political system is demonstrative of our commitment. I enjoy keeping one leg firmly planted in the Guyanese diasporas community and many of you know that my Dad is really avid about that. Again, thanks to you all and your kind measures of support."
Wow Brian! I am so very proud of you! So humble yet so powerful. Man the last time I saw you, you were hounding down that sandwich at the Canadian airport - I never would have thought. . . Creator Bless You Always!
I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate my very dear friend Brian Chin on his promotion to Colonel in the United States Marine Corps, represented by the two eagles on the top of his shouders not to mention the other medals on his chest.....
Brian is without a doubt morally, physically and mentally capable of this position and very capable of transitioning seamlessly between fighting, if necessary, training, advising and assisting or performing all of these tasks simultaneously. As you all probably know Marines are a breed apart and if you know Mr. Chin you know he is certainly a breed apart.
I have no doubt that he will continue to be an excellent steward of the most important resource entrusted to him - OUR NATION'S SONS AND DAUGHTERS, and will undoubtedly continue to serve a cause greater than himself while ensuring to uphold the Motto: SEMPER FIDELIS.
Brian CONGRATULATIONS and my gratitude always for your dedicated service to ensuring the freedoms of the American people. May God guide you and keep you safe.
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March 19, 2009 | 5:30:11 PM 
A Joint Strike Fighter took off today for the first time with a U.S. Marine at the controls.
. You just have to love them.
