Friday, December 25, 2009

A Message from a Marine in Iraq to All Vietnam Vets






A Pal sent this to me, even though it is a bit long it is worth passing on.

Please Send to all Vietnam Vets you know.


Listen up. Your care of today’s military folks is being recognized and appreciated.


Date: Thursday, November 19, 2009, 8:01 PM


A Thank You to Vietnam Vets from a Marine in Iraq


A guy gets time to think over here and I was thinking about all the support we get from home. Sometimes it's overwhelming. We get care packages at times faster than we can use them. There are boxes and boxes of toiletries and snacks lining the center of every tent; the generosity has been amazing. So, I was pondering the question: "Why do we have so much support?"


In my opinion, it came down to one thing: Vietnam. I think we learned a lesson, as a nation, that no matter what, you have to support the troops who are on the line, who are risking everything. We treated them so poorly back then. When they returned was even worse. The stories are nightmarish of what our returning warriors were subjected to. It is a national scar, a blemish on our country, an embarrassment to all of us.


After Vietnam, it had time to sink in. The guilt in our collective consciousness grew. It shamed us. However, we learned from our mistake.


Somewhere during the late 1970's and into the 80's, we realized that we can't treat our warriors that way. So, starting during the Gulf War, when the first real opportunity arose to stand up and support the troops, we did. We did it to support our friends and family going off to war. But we also did it to right the wrongs from the Vietnam era. We treated our troops like the heroes they were, acknowledged and celebrated their sacrifice, and rejoiced at their homecoming instead of spitting on them. And that support continues today for those of us in Iraq. Our country knows that it must support us and it does. The lesson was learned in Vietnam and we are better because of it.


Everyone who has gone before is a hero. They are celebrated in my heart. I think admirably of all those who have gone before me. From those who fought to establish this country in the late 1770's to those I serve with here in Iraq. They have all sacrificed to ensure our freedom. But when I get back, I'm going to make it a personal mission to specifically thank every Vietnam Vet I encounter for their sacrifice. Because if nothing else good came from that terrible war, one thing did. It was the lesson learned on how we treat our warriors. We as a country learned from our mistake and now treat our warriors as heroes, as we should.


I am the beneficiary of their sacrifice. Not only for the freedom they, like veterans from other wars, ensured, but for how well our country now treats my fellow Marines and I. We are the beneficiaries of their sacrifice.


Semper Fidelis,

Major Brian P. Bresnahan

United States Marine Corps


reply;

Thank you Major but we were just doing what you are doing now, paying our dues to our great nation.


Merry Christmas and Semper Fidelis,

Bob Haran,

USMC 1968-71

A CHRISTMAS MESSAGE FROM RONALD REAGAN



A Christmas message was eloquently delivered to the American people by an American president in December 1981, that president was a former movie actor and Republican governor of California who went on to become one of America's greatest presidents, his name was Ronald Reagan.




December 23, 1981


Good Evening,


At Christmas time, every home takes on a special beauty a special warmth. And that’s certainly true at the White House where so many famous Americans have spent their Christmases over the years. This fine old home—the people’s house—has seen so much, been so much a part of all our lives and history.


G.K. Chesterton once said that “The world would never starve for wonders, but only for the want of wonder.” At this special time of year we all renew our sense of wonder in recalling the story of the first Christmas in Bethlehem nearly 2,000 years ago.


Some celebrate Christmas as the birthday of a great and good philosopher and teacher. Others of us believe in the Divinity of the child born in Bethlehem, that He was, and is, the promised Prince of Peace.


Yes, we’ve questioned why He, who could perform miracles, chose to come among us as a helpless babe. But maybe that was His first miracle; His first great lesson that we should learn to care for one another.


Tonight, in millions of American homes the glow of the Christmas tree is a reflection of the love Jesus taught us. Like the shepherds and wise men of that first Christmas, we Americans have always tried to follow a higher light—a star if you will. At lonely campfire vigils along the frontier, in the darkest days of the Great Depression, through war and peace, the twin beacons of faith and freedom have brightened the American sky.


At times our footsteps may have fallen, but trusting in God’s help we’ve never lost our way. Just across the way from the White House stand the two great emblems of the holiday season: a Menorah, symbolizing the Jewish festival of Hanukkah and the National Christmas Tree, a beautiful towering blue spruce from Pennsylvania.


Like the National Christmas Tree, our country is a living, growing thing planted in the rich American soil. Only our devoted care can bring it to full flower. So let this holiday season be for us a time of re-dedication. Christmas means so much because of One special child.


But Christmas also reminds us that all children are special; that they are gifts from God; gifts beyond price that mean more than any presents money can buy. In their love and laughter, in our hopes for their future, lies the true meaning of Christmas.


So, in a spirit of gratitude for what we’ve been able to achieve together over the past year, and looking forward to all that we hope to achieve together in the years ahead, Nancy and I want to wish you all the best of holiday seasons.



As Charles Dickens, who said it so well in A Christmas Carol, “God bless us, every one.”
Good night.

***

ACR;


At this time in history, when our country is facing war by an enemy who has no love, let us show love for all.


We ask the one true God to watch over our best patriots, who are now defending our great nation at great sacrifice to themselves, let them return home safely and in return for the time they spent in war, let them have lives of peace.


Let us remember this day is to celebrate the coming into the world of our savior Jesus, let us remember to pray to him for forgiveness of our many sins and his guidance in all we do.


Have a Merry Christmas,

Bob Haran,

American Conservative Republican

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

A MESSAGE FROM OUR GOVERNOR




Last March I proposed to the Arizona Legislature a comprehensive, multi-year solution to address our massive state budget deficit. But many of the important components of that plan have yet to be adopted by the Legislature. This year I have implemented the largest state budget reductions ever in our state’s history. Further budget reductions will certainly be necessary, but much more work remains to rescue the finances of our state. Reality about the depth of this deficit and fiscal crisis must set in.


We, who have taken an oath to steer this Arizona ship, cannot now refuse to take the helm. Arizonans expect us to do our duty. That’s what they deserve. They are entitled to our very best – our courage to confront difficulties in the pursuit of solutions, not political points or partisan gamesmanship. The time has come to put aside temptations to run from what this moment in Arizona history demands of us. The time has come to place our hands on the wheel and do what we all know is right.


As Governor, I ask that we confront our financial plight with the strength of a united purpose. That is our commitment to Arizona. Let us fulfill it.