Friday, August 29, 2008

Complaint To The Military (How dare they??)

Complaint to the Military (Read this)
  
Noise Complaint at Luke AFB, AZ
 
Luke AFB is west of Phoenix and is rapidly being surrounded by civilization that complains about the noise from the base and its planes, forgetting that it was there long before they were.
 
A certain lieutenant colonel at Luke AFB deserves a big pat on the back. Apparently, an individual who lives somewhere near Luke AFB wrote the local paper complaining about a group of F-16s that disturbed their day at the mall. 
When that individual read the response from a Luke AFB officer, it must have stung quite a bit.
 The complaint:
 
'Question of the day for Luke Air Force Base:
 Whom do we thank for the morning air show? Last Wednesday, at precisely 9:11 a.m, a tight formation of four F-16 jets made a low pass over Arrowhead Mall, continuing west over Bell Road at approximately 500 feet.
 
Imagine our good fortune! Do the 'Tom Cruise-wannabes' feel we need this wake-up call, or were they trying to impress the cashiers at Mervyn's early bird special? Any response would be appreciated.'
 
 The response:
  Regarding 'A wake-up call from Luke's jets'
  
On June 15, at precisely 9:12 a.m., a perfectly timed four-ship fly-by of
 F-16s from the 63rd Fighter Squadron at Luke Air Force Base flew over the grave of Capt. Jeremy Fresques. Capt. Fresques was an Air Force officer who was previously stationed at Luke Air Force Base and was killed in  Iraq on May 30, Memorial Day.
 
At 9 a.m.on June 15, his family and friends gathered at Sunland Memorial Park in Sun City to mourn the loss of a husband, son and friend. Based on the letter writer's recount of the fly-by, and because of the jet noise,  I'm sure you didn't hear the 21-gun salute, the playing of Taps, or my words to the widow and parents of Capt. Fresques as I gave them their son's flag on behalf of the President of the United States and all those veterans and servicemen and women who understand the sacrifices they have endured.
 
A four-ship fly-by is a display of respect the Air Force gives to those 
who give their lives in defense of freedom. We are professional aviators 
and take our jobs seriously, and on June 15 what the letter writer witnessed was four officers lining up to pay their ultimate respects.
 
The letter writer asks, 'Whom do we thank for the morning air show?
 
The 56th Fighter Wing will make the call for you, and forward your thanks to the widow and parents of Capt. Fresques, and thank them for you, for it  was in their honor that my pilots flew the most honorable formation of their lives.
  
Only 2 defining forces have ever offered to die for you... Jesus Christ and the American Soldier. One died for your soul and liberty; the other for your natural freedom.
 
(signed) 
Lt. Col. Grant L. Rosensteel, Jr. USAF

 'Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway.

~John Wayne~

Friday, August 22, 2008

Harry & Ike, Ronnie, Georges,& Espeically John McCain!

Harry S. Truman <?XML:NAMESPACE PREFIX = O />


"The Buck Stops  Here."

        "It doesn't matter how big  a ranch ya' own, or how many cows ya'
brand, the size of your funeral is  still gonna  depend on the weather."
-Harry Truman.

I have never heard that before!  I loved iT!  Dave has heard it, where was I when he heard it, I wonder.  I remember when Harry Truman was president.  I think I was in kindergarten or first grade. I remember it because no one thought he'd win. My Dad's family were stanch Republicans, but even they liked Harry Truman and his unique way of saying things like they are!  Yep, I remember.
 
Then came Dwight Eisenhower who looked exactly like my grandfather Hills had looked. Since I didn't have many pictures of Grandfather before he got sick, I put pic's of Dwight Eisenhower all over our house.  I also remember 1976,  It was a bicentennial year. Not that I got carried away or anything, but I bought everything I could with the date 1976 on it. Glasses, coffee cups, pictures, you name it.  I still have some of that stuff.
 
I loved Ronald Reagan. I will always love Ronald Reagan.  He was one of those people that changed the world so much in so many ways for the better. I still miss Ronald Reagan.  I am going on & on here, I am going to copy this for my journal.  That's what journals are for is blabbing on, right? 
 
I liked Bill Clinton. Throw bricks at me, I don't care. I liked the person especially when he was done being our President. We visited DC in 1999, when he was in Office, it changed the way I felt about him and history and my country. Can Bill be that bad if he did all that?
 
I liked both George Bush's. Lotza people don't much like that. But I don't care.  They were both good men and the son a better President than his Dad, I think.  I think George Bush held our country together after 9-11.  I don't see how people can't see that.  I think he will be thrilled to go back to Crawford, Texas.
 
Okay, this is the end part.  I liked all of these presidents. But not a one of them did I like as much as I do John McCain.  John is my man.  I am passionate in my support of him.  So, there you have it.  I am a proud McCain Volunteer and I will be helping his campaign as election day comes closer. And on the day election is.  I will poll watch. And I will pray.  And that's all I can do. Go John Go!
xoxo
Merry