POLITICS1
Goes to War with the
1st Battalion/23rd Marine Regiment
Editor's
Note: Politics1 "adopted" the 1st Battalion/23rd Marines
-- an infantry regiment of reservists from Texas (and neighboring
states) deployed to Iraq in August 2004. Lt James Crabtree,
a regular Politics1 reader, belongs to the battalion and he
submits regular dispatches to us. Anything you can do to show
support for these brave yound men and women is greatly appreciated
(regardless of whether or not you support the war). If you'd
like to send them any care packages -- and they'd certainly
be appreciated -- please send them to: Lt
Crabtree, 1/23 H&S Co, Unit 41900, FPO, AP 96426-1900
-- and James will distribute whatever you send to many of the
Marines in the 1/23d.
ARCHIVED
ENTRIES ON THE 1/23 MARINES:
JULY - AUGUST 2004
SEPTEMBER 2004
OCTOBER 2004
NOVEMBER 2004
DECEMBER 2004
JANUARY 2005
FEBRUARY 2005
FEBRUARY
25, 2005 - REPORT FROM IRAQ: ANOTHER LOSS. Our special
correspondent Lt. James Crabtree of the 1/23 Marines writes
home with news of a sad accident.
Dear
Politics1.com Friends,
It’s
a nice sunny day here at the dam and it feels like spring
is near. The first wave of those that will replace us arrived
today. I think that is why it is especially tragic that just
a few days ago we lost LCpl Trevor Aston in a vehicle accident.
One of our Weapon’s Company Marine touching LCpl Aston’s
helmet.
Aston kept track of each mission he had
been on -- 130+ -- with tick marks on his helmet.
LCpl
Aston (right) was remembered at a memorial service at the
dam yesterday (pictured above). Just like the memorials that
came before, it was somber and moving. All of the Marines
that knew him best spoke about the type of man he was. I had
the privilege of being his platoon commander for a brief while
back in Austin and I was struck by his thoughtfulness and
his life experiences. He had been a bartender in Austin for
about 15 years and joined the Marines as he came close to
his 30th birthday. Trevor, 32, was older than most LCpls and
I believe many looked up to and respected him. I remember
him telling me that many of his friends were surprised by
his desire to join the Marine Corps. Once you spent some time
with him, it wasn’t a surprise. Everyone that knew him spoke
of his dedication and skill, his heart-felt connection to
his fellow Marines, and his desire to return home and show
the guys from his company a good time at some of the bars
in Austin. The Austin
American-Statesman had a story about Trevor today in which
his mom talked about how he wanted to be a firefighter and
how he joined after 9/11.
A final salute. Trevor's 1stSgt -- 1stSgt James Miller --
saluting
the memorial for LCpl Aston. The river is in the background.
The 1stSgt and CO were the last two people to salute.
It's
emotionally draining to try to type just a few words that
sum up our thoughts and emotions at a time like this. I pray
this is the last update I write that mentions us losing someone.
I can share one small item that perhaps reflects how strongly
everyone here feels towards one another. After LCpl Aston
had died and before the helicopter arrived to take his body
on his final trip home, some of the Corpsman from our aid
station covered him with an American flag. This flag was one
that had been presented to us by Congressman Reyes of El Paso
and had flown over the U.S. Capitol. We have been told that
this flag will be presented to his family in addition to the
normal flag that covers the casket. I certainly hope this
is true, because it embodies the caring that the Marines and
Sailors here feel for one another -- and for the families.
If
any of you have been following the news from over here, you
may be familiar with the fact that we are currently involved
in an operation called "River Blitz." Even as I
type this, we have members of our battalion that have been
capturing or killing some of the insurgents in our area. This
event has caused the media to pay a great deal of attention
to our battalion. In addition to still having Mr. Razuri here
with us from the Agence France Presse (several of his photos
from here appeared in the L.A. Times and Washington Post recently)
we added Mr. Alistair Bull of the Reuters News Service. Mr.
Bull has been with Reuters for over 15 years and is a native
of England. He refers to us as “chaps” and is already outside
the dam working on his stories. We also had a USAF SSgt from
who works as a reporter for the Armed Forces TV Network visit
us for a couple of days. I guess this is the place to be!
The
other night I finally had a chance to watch the State of the
Union address that my Mom and Step-Dad mailed to me. They
burned a copy of it onto a DVD and I was able to see it on
a small portable player. I’ve never been emotionally moved
by a State of the Union speech before, but the moment when
Sgt. Norwood’s parents were recognized was very personal to
me. I thought of all of the families of those we have lost
and I listened to what Mrs. Norwood had written to the President
in her letter. His mom and dad reminded me of another family
whose Marine son was lost over here last spring. Many of the
Marines from Austin volunteered to take part in Cpl. Matthew
Matula’s funeral and they will never forget it. It seemed
like his entire town turned out for the service. Some that
spoke of LCpl Aston yesterday were pall bearers and rifle
guard members at that earlier funeral. You need to see this
part of the address if nothing else. It choked me up. The
entire chamber appeared moved by the moment, as well.
One
final comment: we have received so many care packages (including
a great one yesterday from Edd Hendee, the radio show host
that visited us) that I was able to give another twenty boxes
to our Azerbaijani soldiers. They loved it and want me to
thank everyone. They do not get mail for the whole time they
are here, so little things like snacks, hygiene items, and
magazines really mean a lot to them.
Remember:
"Patriotism is not short, frenzied outbursts of emotion, but
the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime." - Governor
Adlai Stevenson.
Semper
Fi,
James
We
appreciate that James continues to share his experience in Iraq.
Remember: letters/"flats" for 1/23 Marines must be
mailed by March 1 if they are to arrive there in time. The 1/23
Marines are scheduled to remain in Iraq until mid-March 2005.
Posted
by Ron Gunzburger - 2.25.05 |
FEBRUARY
21, 2005 - REPORT FROM IRAQ: A VALENTINE'S DAY MESSAGE.
Our special correspondent Lt. James Crabtree of the 1/23
Marines writes home with news of more journalist visits, a General
drops by the award from medals ... and then there are those
Girl Scout cookies.
Dear
Politics1.com Friends,
Hello
once more from 1/23 in Iraq. Sixty years ago this weekend
Marines in 1/23 were taking part in the battle of Iwo Jima.
This momentous fight cost thousands of lives and is still
considered by many to be the most memorable moment in Marine
Corps history. The flag raising that later took place atop
Mount Suribachi became one of the most enduring iconic images
of any war due to the photo taken by Joe Rosenthal. I don’t
know how many parallels there are between that event and what
we are doing here today, but I’d like to hope that members
of 1/23 from WWII would be proud of our men that followed
in their footsteps.
We've
had a lot going on as usual and I’ll try to fit everything
into this report. To start with, Joe Sacco’s story from his
time with us should be running in the Sunday magazine of The
London Guardian on the 27th. He’ll let us know for sure when
it does and will be sending us copies that we are eager to
see. Tony Perry of the L.A. Times has retuned to the US and
a new story he wrote on the battalion appeared in the L.A.
Times on Friday. As usual, it does a good job capturing what
life is like here (the part about an AC-130 gunship being
used during the fighting in Haditha on the 26th is incorrect,
but the rest of the piece is very well done). You can read
it online here.
Currently
we have Mr. Jaime Razuri staying with us as a photojournalist.
He works for Agence France Press and is a native of Lima,
Peru. Mr. Razuri is a friendly gentleman who has been in the
media for almost 20 years -- and has covered some horrific
events ranging from the Shining Path terrorists in South America
to the Japanese embassy siege led by Peruvian President Fujimori
in April 1997 to rescue hostages taken by rebel terrorists.
Mr. Razuri has already been out with our Marines on a 14-hour
mission and will continue to take pictures with us for another
week or so. The AFP is the French version of the Associated
Press or Reuters, so it is possible that some of his photos
could appear around the globe. Mr. Razuri, like most media
members that visit us, is currently staying in The Kuniholm
Suite. He likes how we’ve set up our room and was surprised
that one of our roommates is fluent in Spanish. 2ndLt John
Morris was born and raised in Chiapas, Mexico, and his family
still remains down there as missionaries. It was funny seeing
Lt Morris, who is white and about 6’3”, speaking in Spanish
with Mr. Razuri, who is about 5’1”, about their various travels
in Latin America while standing in a room in a dam in Iraq.
It was almost Felliniesque.
We
have also learned that a reporter from The Christian Science
Monitor will soon be joining our Charlie Company Marines at
their base near the city of Hit. They may also get a visit
from a TV crew from CNN. I think the word has started to get
out about the job our Marines do here . We've also established
ourselves as a unit that is friendly towards the media. I'll
be sure to keep you updated on any possible coverage that
might result from their being with us.
One
thing that I recently learned after seeing a copy of an LA
Times that my Mom sent me was that the family the President
recognized at his State of the Union address is from a town
near Austin. Their son, Cpl Norwood, was killed in Iraq and
was actually a part of the Weapons Company at Camp Mabry before
he went on active duty. I personally never knew him, but several
of our Marines here did. From all accounts I’ve seen, the
moment that Mr. and Mrs. Norwood were recognized was the best
part of the evening and was considered to be very moving.
It makes it feel like a small world to know he was once in
our battalion.
Cpl Parr (left) and LCpl Garcia marching forward to get their
medals.
SgtMaj Miller is holding the awards,
LtCol Stevens is in the center, and Brigadier General Williams
is at right.
On
Saturday our battalion had a visit from Brigadier General
James Williams. He is currently the Commander of the First
Marine Expeditionary Force’s Augmentation Command Element.
The General was the commander of our battalion in the mid
'90s and you could tell he was glad to visit. He was given
a full brief by the staff and then awarded Navy Achievement
Medals to Cpl Parr and LCpl Garcia in front of the entire
battalion. The formation even included a large number of the
Azerbaijanis and the newly formed Iraqi Freedom Guard. Gen.
Williams and his Sergeant Major later addressed the entire
battalion and they had nothing but praise for the job that
everyone has done here. It’s not everyday that a general comes
to see us and it’s nice for the troops to know that the folks
high up on the chain of command appreciate what they are doing.
GySgt Salvati, Cpl Carner, LCpl Seeger, and Cpl Parr from
Weapons Company
in Austin enjoy some Girl Scout cookies in the Weapon’s
Company office.
Actually, GySgt Salvati is eating some of our ubiquitous chow
hall chicken.
Finally,
I want to thank the girls of Brownie Troop 1788 in Austin,
Texas, for the great package of Girl Scout cookies they sent
us. The Marines loved them. We get lots of great care packages
from so many people -- and this was one of the best. The girls
sold cookies in front of an HEB grocery store on Highways
620 and 2222 in Austin and their den mother writes that they
were extremely excited about sending over the large package
full of cookie boxes. I don’t think I’ve ever met someone
that didn’t like Girl Scout cookies.
Well, until next time, thank you for reading this update and for all of your continued support.
Semper
Fi,
James
We
appreciate that James continues to share his experience in Iraq.
Remember: letters/"flats" for 1/23 Marines must be
mailed by March 1 if they are to arrive there in time. The 1/23
Marines are scheduled to remain in Iraq until March 2005.
Posted
by Ron Gunzburger - 2.21.05 |
FEBRUARY
14, 2005 - REPORT FROM IRAQ: A VALENTINE'S DAY MESSAGE.
Our special correspondent Lt. James Crabtree of the 1/23
Marines writes home with some more good news. [Editor's FYI:
We also got a nice email this past week from the father of LCpl
Karl Linn, one of the four 1/23 Marines killed on January 26.
Here's an except from Dick Linn's message: "Check out the
web site [Karl] slapped together in the middle of January at
www.karl.linn.net.
He was doing what he wanted to do ... Tell all the guys that
we sincerely appreciate all that they are doing. I hope they
all return safe, and soon."]
Dear
Politics1.com Friends,
Hello
from the Dam. All is relatively well here right now. This
Valentine's Day will hopefully be our last holiday (if that
is what Valentine’s Day is) in Iraq before we return
home to the states. I know we have many Marines and sailors
here that long to be home with their Valentines. God willing,
it won't be too much longer until that is the case. As a kid,
my favorite Valentine was always Bobby, but I think that’s
because he managed my favorite team: the Texas Rangers. In
all seriousness, please don’t feel lonely if your loved
one is over here right now. Just save all of the nice Valentine’s
Day stuff until they return home. I’m sure it'll be
worth it.
One
sign that our return is growing imminent is the fact that
we now have mail cut-off dates. In order to ensure that any
boxes mailed to us here arrive before our return home, we
are asking that no one send any packages after February
20. Letters and flat items travel much more quickly and, thus,
the cut-off date for them should be March 1. Anything
that is sent over after we have returned to the US will be
returned to sender unless the outside of the box clearly states
that it can be passed along to anyone. Once we have the mailing
address for the battalion that will replace us I’ll
be sure to let everyone know. It will not be the same as ours.
Mr. McFeely -- he of Speedy Delivery fame on "Mr. Rogers'
Neighborhood" -- is the patron saint of our mail, and
I’m sure he’ll continue to look over our care
packages until the battalion’s return.
L.A. Times reporter Tony Perry (right) with
Azerbaijani commander Major Shabuzov (center) and Lt Qarayev
One
of the highlights this week has been having Mr. Tony Perry
here with us from the Los Angeles Times. He has been in the
newspaper business for many years and is now the San Diego
Bureau Chief of the L.A. Times. This is his third trip to
Iraq and everyone has enjoyed having him around. Already he
has spent time with members of our Small Craft platoon and
the Marines from Weapons Company. Yesterday he was even able
to interview the Azerbaijanis and get a full tour of their
side of the dam. The AZs were first class hosts. Their commander,
Major Salbuzov, rolled out the red carpet for him by serving
hot tea and chocolates. Later a soldier even brought in hot
chocolate. The interview went very well and the AZs were flattered
to have a prominent American paper writing about their exploits.
After thirty or so minutes of drinking and talking, the Major
presented Mr. Perry with a nice bottle of red wine direct
from Azerbaijan. Now it's up to Mr. Perry to figure out how
to get it home without breaking it.
Mr.
Perry's story about his visit here is in the Friday edition
of the LA Times. You can read it online here.
The articles mentions that site plans of the dam that were
found in an insurgent hideout. This happened well before we
got here (Mr. Perry found that factoid by doing a search on
the internet). He also unearthed a nugget about some firm
doing $12 million worth of renovations to the dam. This, too,
must have occurred before we arrived. The story is well-written
and I hope it will help generate more interest and appreciation
for what the Azerbaijanis do -- and for what strong allies
we have in them. They are some of the most disciplined and
loyal military men I’ve seen and we're grateful they
are on our side. The Major spoke of how he has been in the
military for 18 years and that he even spent five years as
a platoon commander in East Germany as part of the Soviet
military. Who in 1987 would have ever expected him to be serving
with us shoulder to shoulder here in Iraq?
A
few months ago I wrote about Lt Abasov returning to Azerbaijan
after having spent 18 consecutive months at the dam. Yesterday
during the interview, Lt Qarayev (called "Garayev"
in the Times piece) happily told me that Lt Abasov is now
a company commander and, more importantly, he and his fiancée
got married. I don’t think they have Valentine’s
Day in his country, but Lt Abasov and his wife must believe
in true love if she would wait 18 months for his return home.
Not
all of our news coverage here comes from media professionals.
Corporal Adam Gobbo -- a 23-year-old from Tulsa, Oklahoma
-- is a member of Weapons Company. While on patrols, he is
able to film events that unfold around him. Two weeks after
his graduation from Oklahoma State he found himself being
activated and sent to Iraq. This sudden change of events has
allowed him to focus more on one of his main passions. Video
making is one of his hobbies and he was able to ingeniously
rig a small video camera onto his helmet, cover it with camouflage,
and use weights to serve as a counter balance -- as pictured
above. His helmet now weighs twice what it normally would,
but besides ending up with a neck the size of Popeye, he is
able to simply press a small exposed button on the back of
the camera to begin filming. The videos he has recorded here
in Iraq are unlike anything an embedded reporter would ever
be able to capture. It is like you are seeing the actions
through his eyes and you often see his arm and rifle come
into the picture. Talk about stepping into someone else’s
shoes; or combat boots in this case. There is a good deal
of training value in what he has taped and I wouldn’t
be surprised if some of his footage could be made into a documentary.
He is also using his skills in editing and layout design work
to put together a souvenir disk for each member of the battalion.
Some of the videos he already produced are very impressive.
In a related note, his younger brother is the LCpl Gobbo pictured
in my February 5th report for receiving a Navy Achievement
Medal for helping save a wounded Marines’ life.
Well,
that’s all the time and space I have for this update.
Thank you as always for your prayers and support!
Semper
Fi,
James
P.S.
We received a nice letter of support last week from Congressman
Michael Burgess of the north Dallas suburbs. Including his
letter, we have now received correspondence from 14 of the
32 Members of Congress from Texas.
We
appreciate that James continues to share his experience in Iraq.
If you'd like to send the 1/23d any care packages, please address
the packages to Lt Crabtree, 1/23 H&S Co, Unit 41900,
FPO, AP 96426-1900 ... and James will ensure that whatever
you ship gets distributed to the Marines in the 1/23. Remember:
Packages must be shipped by February 20 and
letters/"flats" must be mailed by March 1 if they
are to arrive there in time. The 1/23 Marines are scheduled
to remain in Iraq until March 2005.
Posted
by Ron Gunzburger - 2.14.05 |
FEBRUARY
5, 2005 - REPORT FROM IRAQ: A RETURN TO BETTER DAYS.
Our special correspondent Lt. James Crabtree of the 1/23
Marines writes home with some nicer news.
Dear
Politics1.com Friends,
A
few days ago Punxsutawney Phil, the infamous Pennsylvania
groundhog, emerged from his hole on Gobbler’s Knob and
saw his shadow ... meaning that 1/23 has another six weeks
in Iraq. Actually, it probably means six more weeks of winter,
but for our Marines and sailors the end is getting closer.
That's why everyone is redoubling their efforts to maintain
focus and accomplish the mission before our return home.
LCpl Sauceda, LCpl Ramirez, HM3 Perez, LCpl Gobbo,
and LCpl Poe (not visible.), all at attention on the left.
1stSgt Miller (right) is holding the awards and Major
Russell is the one pinning the Purple Heart on LCpl Ramirez.
We
have had some good and positive things happen here over the
last few days that I’m eager to share with you. First,
several members of our Weapons Company were honored at an
awards ceremony recently. Lance Corporals Sauceda and Ramirez
received Purple Heart medals from their company commander
(Major Russell) for wounds suffered in combat. HM3 Perez and
LCpl Gobbo were each awarded a Navy Achievement Medal for
quick and skillful first aid they applied to a wounded Marine.
Their actions likely saved his life. The fifth person to be
recognized was LCpl Poe, who received a medal recognizing
his three years of good and faithful service in the Marine
Reserves. Ceremonies like these don’t get a lot of attention
in the mainstream media, but they should. [Editor's note:
James is being very modest here, but he was also awarded the
Navy Achievement Medal last month -- in part for these columns
he's been writing here.]
Another
highlight here at the Dam was a live radio call we conducted
with KVET in Austin on Thursday morning. Governor Rick Perry
was on the air before us to present University of Texas Coach
Mack Brown with a pair of boots for winning the Rose Bowl.
Both of these gentlemen kindly hung around in the radio studio
to speak with our troops after their segment was over. It
was quite a thrill for everyone here. Unfortunately, the station
ran out of time before we could get everyone on the air, but
they did have us on for 23 minutes with no interruptions during
prime drive-time. Coach Brown was extremely classy in his
comments and the Governor remarked about how he was present
for the battalion’s send off in June and wants to have
an even bigger welcome home event. I know everyone here would
love that. You can go to www.kvet.com
and click on the Sam and Bob Show to listen to an audio file
of the phone call. It was very surreal to be looking over
the Euphrates River and speaking with Mack Brown and the Governor
via satellite phone. The people at KVET are great folks and
it always makes us feel closer to home to talk with them.
Our
quest to get attention for our battalion continues to pay
off because we learned yesterday that Tony Perry, a writer
for the L.A. Times, will be embedded with us starting on the
8th. He has a good reputation as a journalist and has been
embedded with Marines before. My mom and step-dad live in
the Los Angeles area, so it’ll be nice for them to read
about our battalion in their hometown paper. As the legendary
Dizzy Dean used to say, “Whoda thunkit?” I also
got a nice email from our first embed, Mr. Joe Sacco, who
told me he’s furiously finishing his drawings for his
story on 1/23. His deadline is near and the piece should be
in a Sunday magazine of The (London) Guardian sometime this
month. I’ll be sure to let you know when it comes out.
We
have continued to receive an enormous amount of care packages
from people all around America. I’m amazed at all the
different places these packages come from. They are from all
walks of life and various backgrounds and political beliefs,
but they all have selflessly chosen to mail items halfway
around the world to people they may never meet in person.
We’ve received boxes that range from a firm on Wall
Street to a small class in Sioux City, Iowa. Thank you for
doing this. Today I was even able to give our Azerbaijani
soldiers over a dozen large boxes full of care items. They
greatly appreciate this since they are stationed here for
18 months and have no way of getting mail from their country.
Each and everyone one of them would thank you in person if
they ever got the chance.
I
have one more photo I want to share before I wrap up this
update. I mentioned the other day that 1/8 -- the infantry
battalion we replaced here at the dam -- had returned home
to Camp Lejeune last Friday after their time here in Iraq.
Well, this photo above is of my great friend, Capt Mike Pretus,
sleeping with his newborn son Jackson. After all the hell
Mike and his Marines went through over here in places like
Fallujah, I love being able to see a picture like this. It’s
an iconic imagine of home, family, security, and the future.
I hope and pray that everyone here in 1/23 will be able to
be home soon and experience moments like this as well.
Thank
you as always for reading this update and for all of your
support.
Semper
Fi,
James
We
appreciate that James continues to share his experience in Iraq.
If you'd like to send the 1/23d any care packages, please address
the packages to Lt Crabtree, 1/23 H&S Co, Unit 41900,
FPO, AP 96426-1900 ... and James will ensure that whatever
you ship gets distributed to the Marines in the 1/23. The 1/23
Marines are scheduled to remain in Iraq until March 2005.
Posted
by Ron Gunzburger - 2.5.05 |
FEBRUARY
1, 2005 - REPORT FROM IRAQ: REFLECTIONS ON SOME SAD DAYS.
Our special correspondent Lt. James Crabtree of the 1/23
Marines writes home about the loss of four more of their men.
Dear
Politics1.com Friends,
A
lot has happened since I was last able to write and once more
the news is such that I would rather not share it, but I feel
compelled to.
On
January 26th our battalion lost four of our fellow Marines
to enemy action. Combined with the tragic crash of a Marine
helicopter that same night, the 26th of January was the single
deadliest day for the US Military since the USS Iowa explosion
in 1987 -- and the worst day for the US Marine Corps since
the Beirut barracks bombing in 1983. These four young men
we lost in the ambush were all a part of our Engineer Platoon,
based in Lynchburg, Virginia. Here are the four Marines:
Sgt Jesse Strong, 25, of Albany, Vermont
Cpl Christopher Weaver, 24, of Fredericksburg, Virginia
LCpl Karl Linn, 20, of Chesterfield, Virginia
(holding a chrome plated AK-47 captured from an insurgent)
Cpl Jonathan Bowling, 23, of Patrick, Virginia
They
were all lost on the same mission. The next day we had a memorial
service for our fallen brethren and it was hard to keep your
composure as you listened to their best friends speak about
them. Even the cameraman from the WABC crew -- who had been
on the raid the night before -- was brought to tears during
the memorial. I wish I wasn’t the one writing to you about
losing these men, but I know how vital it is that we never
forget them.
Vague
platitudes and generalities can not replace the hurt I know
their families feel. These men are heroes to me and I know
everyone else in the battalion feels the same way. My personal
beliefs tell me that these young men are in a better place
now; a place with no suffering, death, or war. No lonesomeness,
tragedy, or sorrow. Those that remain behind to grieve them
are the ones that bear the burden now, but I believe these
men will be reunited one day with all those who love them.
Maybe I’m getting too spiritual for some folks, but this is
how I feel. There are a lot of things that happen here that
have no explanation.
I
often think about my great-great-great grandfather -- Sgt
Artemas Wetherbee -- who served in the Civil War with the
21st NY Volunteer Cavalry Regiment at my age. I wonder what
his experiences were like. How did he deal with the loss of
his fellow soldiers? How did he communicate with his family?
What were his hopes, desires, and fears? It brings me some
comfort to know that he went through some of the same things
I’m dealing with now. I believe one day I’ll be able to talk
to him and compare our experiences. I also hope that I can
talk to all of the men we have lost in 1/23 and tell them
that we love them. The Marine Corps calls itself a “Band of
Brothers” and I feel that more now than I ever have at anytime
before or elsewhere in my life.
We do have some other news to share. The elections were held
here in Iraq on Sunday. Our Marines did an outstanding job
working with the Iraqi National Guard to establish and keep
the polling places open in our area despite violent attacks
by the insurgents. Our two polling sites were attacked with
rockets and such, but none came close to hitting our guys.
I'm just glad they are all safe -- and that the polls here
remained open for the entire time. Many people here considered
that achievement alone to already be a victory. I’ll leave
it to the pundits and talking heads to debate the results
in the rest of the nation. I’m just glad our Marines do not
have to count provisional ballots right now.
Edd Hendee, taking photos at the dam
In
other news, Mr. Edd Hendee from KSEV in Houston did two great
live radio shows with our Marines and Sailors. The highlight
was anytime the studio could connect live on the air one of
our troops with a family member at home. What a great surprise
for these families. Mr. Hendee is a one of the most genuine
and caring people we’ve met over here. He brought all sorts
of gifts for our guys and you could tell he was here more
to support the military then he was to bring fame to himself.
WABC also did some very nice segments on our battalion and
perhaps helped people better understand what our life is like
over here. The footage they shot of the attack on the night
of the 26th was one of the few times an embedded crew has
been exposed to something of that sort and their segment was
picked up and shown around the globe on ABC World News Tonight,
CNN, and many local stations around America.
Another
worthy item to mention is the sharp and skillful actions of
Sgt Dance and his Marines from Weapons Company that resulted
in the capture of two high value insurgent targets in this
area. I wish I could tell you the details because it demonstrates
the courage and wits that these Marines display. If Iraq is
going to become a peaceful place one day, it will owe a big
debt to Marines like Sgt Dance and his group.
The
final note I have to share is that the Austin Marines will
be live on The Sammy and Bob Morning Show again on Feb 3rd.
I don’t have the exact time yet, but it will be in the morning
in Austin on KVET 1300 AM and 98.1 FM. I hope you will listen
if you can.
Also,
the 1/8 battalion that we replaced at the dam is finally home
in Camp Lejeune. My good friend, Capt Mike Pretus, was able
to see his son for the first time when he got off the plane.
It’s news like this that makes my day.
Thank
you as always for reading this update and for all of your
support. Every letter, email, and care package we have received
from you has made a world of difference for our guys. Thank
you from the bottom of my heart.
A
few closing words: "Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet
bellum." (an ancient Roman expression meaning "Therefore,
whoever wishes for peace, let him prepare for war.")
Semper
Fi,
James
We
appreciate that James continues to share his experience in Iraq.
If you'd like to send the 1/23d any care packages, please address
the packages to Lt Crabtree, 1/23 H&S Co, Unit 41900,
FPO, AP 96426-1900 ... and James will ensure that whatever
you ship gets distributed to the Marines in the 1/23. The 1/23
Marines are scheduled to remain in Iraq until March 2005.
Posted
by Ron Gunzburger - 2.1.05 |
READ
OLDER ARTICLES ON THE 1/23 MARINES IN OUR ARCHIVES:
JULY - AUGUST 2004 ARTICLES
SEPTEMBER 2004 ARTICLES
OCTOBER 2004 ARTICLES
NOVEMBER 2004 ARTICLES
DECEMBER 2004 ARTICLES
JANUARY 2005 ARTICLES
FEBRUARY 2005 ARTICLES
