I got this in an email and found it quite profound. There is a movement in this country to criminalize and stigamatize those who collect, own, and/or carry guns. People ask me all the time, “why do you want so many guns?” My answer is simple: “Because I can.”

But, it’s more than that. One day there may come a time where I “can’t” legally own a gun and when that time comes I’ll own them to protect my absolute right to self defense. I’m not a violent man. I just want to protect myself against those that are!

I don’t carry a gun . . .

… to kill people. I carry a gun to keep from being killed.

I don’t carry a gun to scare people. I carry a gun because sometimes this world can be a scary place.

I don’t carry a gun because I’m paranoid. I carry a gun because there are real threats in the world.

I don’t carry a gun because I’m evil. I carry a gun because I have lived long enough to see the evil in the world.

I don’t carry a gun because I hate the government. I carry a gun because I understand the limitations of government.

I don’t carry a gun because I’m angry. I carry a gun so that I don’t have to spend the rest of my life hating myself for failing to be prepared.

I don’t carry a gun because my sex organs are too small. I carry a gun because I want to continue to use those sex organs for the purpose for which they were intended for a good long time to come.

I don’t carry a gun because I want to shoot someone. I carry a gun because I want to die at a ripe old age in my bed, and not on a sidewalk somewhere tomorrow afternoon.

I don’t carry a gun because I’m a cowboy. I carry a gun because, when I die and go to heaven, I want to be a cowboy.

I don’t carry a gun to make me feel like a man. I carry a gun because men know how to take care of themselves and the ones they love.

I don’t carry a gun because I feel inadequate. I carry a gun because unarmed and facing three armed thugs, I am inadequate.

I don’t carry a gun because I love it. I carry a gun because I love life and the people who make it meaningful to me.

I’m fed up with the reluctance or outright lack of desire to call what happened at Fort Hood an act of terrorism. This was brought up in a Facebook discussion and a journalist – a member of the media – said “it’s not our job to read into things. we can analyze, and find the “why,” but we can’t say it’s terrorism.”

I find that interesting considering all the media ever does is read into things. When was the last time the media waited until the results of an election were certified before declaring a winner? They didn’t have any problems blaming PTSD as soon as it was discovered that Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan worked with troops suffering from the disorder. Yet, they ignored the facts of PTSD which are obvious that it isn’t contagious.

Militant and extremist Islam has declared war not only on this country, but on our military specifically. Recently, it started in March 2003 when SGT Akbar tossed a grenade on Camp Pennsylvania and killed his fellow 101st Airborne Troops. Akbar was a Muslim and didn’t kill those troops because he snapped, but because of his religion.

Two years ago, six Muslim extremists were charged in a plot to kill Soldiers at the Army’s Fort Dix military installation in New Jersey. The plot involved “assault rifles” and grenades with the intent to kill as many Soldiers as possible. Because these guys weren’t Soldiers and didn’t fall under the political correctness of coddling extremist religious views, this plot was thankfully foiled before any Soldiers were killed or injured.

In June of this year, Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad – a 24-year-old Little Rock resident formerly known as Carlos Bledsoe – killed one Soldier and injured another in a shooting that took place at an Army recruiting center. Police said that based off interviews with the killer, he executed the shooting because he was angry with the military’s supposed treatment of Muslims. A young Soldier – Pvt. William Long whom had nothing to do with the cause of Muhammad’s anger – was killed. Muhammad stated to police that he would have killed more if they had been outside at the time.

Now, we have the case of Maj. Nidal Hasan, in which he killed 13 people (including a pregnant Soldier) and wounded over 30 others earlier this month at Fort Hood. The media continues to pound the drum beat that he just “snapped.” A man who had never deployed in his military career somehow snapped and that is why he killed those brave warriors and Americans. They are painting HIM as the victim of this because he was “teased” in his military career. (Side note: will a Soldier of any faith who has never been teased please send me an email. That is worthy of a story in itself.) The media is further eroding their credibility by ignoring statements and evidence that prove this was an extremist ideological attack and not a mere case of stress.

The media is searching far and wide for so-called mental health professionals to support their biased positions of a Soldier broken by a failed war policy. They refuse to interview prominent Muslim scholars and religious leaders who could easily diffuse the religious backlash being heaped upon Muslims. These scholars could explain that this man was no Muslim in the strictest terms, but a radicalized terrorist who bent the teachings of Islam. But, that’s not the slant the media wants us to believe. Instead of reporting on the elephant in the room, they’ve taken the easy road of expounding upon the terrible tragedy that war brings to our troops, either real or made up.

They ignore the more than 34 clues as to why Hasan REALLY committed those premeditated murders and attempted murders of 43 Americans. Never mind that he visited websites espousing radical Islamist ideas. Never mind that he was disciplined for proselytizing about his Muslim faith with patients and colleagues. Never mind that he wrote an internet posting defending suicide bombers: “…..Suicide bombers whose intention, by sacrificing their lives, is to help save Muslims by killing enemy soldiers. If one suicide bomber can kill 100 enemy soldiers because they were caught off guard that would be considered a strategic victory…..”

And yet the military is expending great deals of energy to ensure that the rest of us don’t unfairly blame the religion of peace for what is happening to our troops around the world and in this country at their hands. They are worried that Muslims will be victimized, not that more troops will be victimized by Muslims. They are expending resources – at least publicly – in the hunt for more radical Islamic extremists within our ranks, but the the radical non-Muslim elements that may be seeking revenge, whoever these people are. They can continue to spout their rhetoric free of consequences until Soldiers die.

Political correctness is the friend of the extremist Islamic radical. They know that we have no backbone to seek out more potential perpetrators and will use that against us. The military is so publicity shy, that they don’t want to risk being called bigots for searching the ranks for more like-minded extremists. Instead, the rest of us who are concerned about the impact of all these attacks against us by a religious philosophy that doesn’t value life but exalts martyrdom will be treated like racists, bigots, and extremists in our own right. They will get away with it, but if you’re not a Muslim, don’t you dare stand up for anything you believe in. The military will attack you for it.

On October 24 at Chicago’s Palmer House Hilton, the Chicago-based Tawani Foundation will present the Pritzker Military Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing to Gerhard L. Weinberg.

The Pritzker Military Library Literature Award recognizes a living author for a body of work that has profoundly enriched the public understanding of American military history. The recipient’s contributions may be academic, non-fiction, fiction, or a combination of any of the three, and his or her work should embody the values of the Pritzker Military Library.

Mr. Weinberg was born in Hanover, Germany, on January 1, 1928. He was the son of Jewish parents. His father was a decorated Soldier who had fought in the German Army during World War I and his mother was a loving homemaker. After returning from WWI, Weinberg’s father went back to work in the judiciary, but found the atmosphere so unpleasant that he moved to the new Ministry of Finance.

In 1933, the Nazis came to power and passed a law forbidding all Jewish persons from holding civil service positions. However, German President Paul von Hindenburg insisted that Jewish Germans who fought on the front lines of WWI be granted exception from the law. When Hindenburg died in 1934, everyone exempted under the Nazi law were fired.

Weinberg’s father was unemployed – and unemployable – and decided to open an office to advise Jews leaving Germany on the constantly changing rules about what could be taken from the country. Weinberg’s living room was converted into an office and his hallway became a waiting area full of Jews waiting for quote numbers to emigrate from Germany to the United States.

After the November 1938, Quakers in England followed up on changes in the English government as a result of the pogrom. The government allowed Jews waiting to get into another country to stay in England temporarily. Weinberg’s parents shipped him and his siblings on a boat from Hamburg to England where he attended school.

During the Battle of Britain and at the beginning of the blitz, the family’s quota numbers came up and in September of 1940 they were sent to the United States on one of the last passenger ships making the trip.

Weinberg settled in Albany, NY and it was there that he began his love for education and writing. A few years earlier, he had been abruptly removed from class while non-Jewish classmates looked on. The principal walked into the classroom and read the official decree that Jews could no longer be in the school system. He and another boy were literally required to collect all their belongings on the spot and leave the room, alarmed and concerned.

Weinberg loved his American education so much that he quickly decided he wanted to become a secondary school teacher. He went on to attend New York State College for Teachers in Albany, which is now known as the University of New York at Albany.

When Weinberg turned 18, his education was interrupted as he was drafted into the Army Air Corps. After attending basic training at Camp Polk, he was sent to San Francisco and transferred to the 4th Replacement Depot at Camp Zama, Japan. Shortly after arriving in country, his education was put to good use as he was transferred to Yokohama in August 1946.

At the time, Yokohama was home to an Army Education Program School. The Army needed teachers badly and Weinberg was a perfect fit, having completed three years of college credits prior to being drafted. For the next year, Weinberg taught American History and American Government for the Information and Education Headquarters of the 8th US Army.

In 1947, the Army was discharging all its draftees. Since Weinberg had not yet attained his American citizenship, he was unable to remain in service voluntarily. After hardly more than a year of military service, Weinberg was given an honorable discharge and sent back to the United States.

Weinberg returned to the University at Albany and used his G.I. Bill benefits to receive a B.A. in social studies and an M.A. at the University of Chicago. By the time he graduated in 1951, positions in the academic world were scarcest and enrollments were shrinking as all the WWII veterans had completed or were about to complete their G.I. Bill-funded education.

He began work as a contractor for the Air Force in Montgomery, Alabama at the Human Resources Research Institute on the “War Documentation Project.” His research included sorting through captured WWII German records that were being scanned to microfiche and sent back to Germany.

Through his years of teaching, lecturing, research, and study, Weinberg has published a string of books, and longer string of reviews, article and other publications, on World War II German history. He has become a trusted source of military history that is sought out by authors, scholars, and historians alike.

For his more than 50 years of military historical research, Gerhard Weinberg will be honored with a $100,000 honorarium, citation and medallion, sponsored by the Chicago-based Tawani Foundation, which will be presented at the Library’s annual Liberty Gala on October 24, 2009. Weinberg currently lives in Efland, North Carolina, with his wife Janet.

Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has authorized checks for up to $3,000 to be given to students who have applied for educational benefits and who have not yet received their government payment. The checks will be distributed to eligible students at VA regional benefits offices across the country starting Oct. 2, 2009.

“Students should be focusing on their studies, not worrying about financial difficulties,” Secretary Shinseki said. “Education creates life-expanding opportunities for our Veterans.”

Starting Friday, Oct. 2, 2009, students can go to one of VA’s 57 regional benefit offices with a photo ID and a course schedule to request advance payment of their education benefits. Because not all these offices are located near students, VA expects to send representatives to schools with large Veteran-student bodies and work with Veteran Service Organizations to help students with transportation needs.

A list of those VA regional offices is available at www.vba.va.gov/VBA/benefits/offices.asp.

“I’m asking our people to get out their road maps and determine how we can reach the largest number of college students who can’t reach us,” VA’s Under Secretary for Benefits Patrick Dunne said. “Not everyone has a car. Not everyone can walk to a VA benefits office.”
Although VA does not know how many students will request emergency funds, it has approximately 25,000 claims pending that may result in payments to students.

The funds VA will give to students now are advance payments of the earned benefits for education benefits. This money will be deducted from future education payments.

VA officials said students should know that after this special payment, they can expect to receive education payments on the normal schedule — the beginning of the month following the period for which they are reimbursed.

“This is an extraordinary action we’re taking,” said Shinseki. “But it’s necessary because we recognize the hardships some of our Veterans face.”

More than 27,500 students have already received benefits for housing or books under the new Post-9/11 GI Bill, or their schools received their tuition payments.

A few years ago when I was stationed in the DC area, I had the opportunity to attend the “Time of Remembrance” ceremony near the White House at the National Mall.

The purpose of the tribute is to bring together the families of America’s fallen in Iraq and Afghanistan and to acknowledge the sacrifice they have made. Families were brought together from across the country. This tribute, held on the grounds of the Washington Monument, honors those who have died in service to their country and the families they left behind.

You can see more photos from this year’s moving event at Army Live.

Two weeks ago, Alabama lost one of its most decorated WWII combat veterans. This is the story Raymond Huling of Fyffe, Alabama, as told by his grandson-in-law, Shane Trotman. He was laid to rest in an honorable ceremony staffed by Soldiers of the 59th Ordinance Brigade of Redstone Arsenal.

Raymond was born in Decatur, Alabama on October 24, 1922. On September 20, 1942, at the age of nineteen, he married Martha Lea Wilson, the “girl next door” better known as Pat. Together, they planned to move and pursue his dream of becoming a professional baseball player.

In December, after only two months of marriage, Raymond received his call to duty to the United States Army. He was dispatched to the European Theatre of Operations in August of 1943 as a Private in the legendary 36th Infantry Division. Raymond was part of the invasion of Salerno, Italy on September 3, 1943. Only three weeks after the initial invasion, he learned of the arrival of his first child. However, Raymond was not to see his daughter until she was more than two years old (and we complain about 12 month deployments?!).

Raymond was in Company G, 141st Regiment of the 36th ID. On December 10, after only a few months of active combat, Raymond was wounded for the first time by a German mortar shell while attacking the town on San Pietro, Italy. He was subsequently hospitalized for six weeks in Tunis, North Africa. The injury consisted of only flesh wounds to the leg and arm and as soon as he recovered, he returned to combat. Raymond fought battles through Sicily, Italy, on to the North Africa, and then was sent to participate in the invasion of Southern France; eventually helping to liberate Paris. As the war went on, Raymond was promoted from Private to Buck Sergeant, to Staff Sergeant, and then to Technical Sergeant (or Platoon Sergeant). After his promotion to TSgt, Raymond was captured by the Germans in an incident that can only be viewed as miraculous. The following is his firsthand account of the incident:

“I was with two scouts, out ahead of our advancing platoon, when we walked through a cut in the road, right into a German ambush. The Germans had the advantage of an elevated position, and they all had their rifles trained on the three of us. They captured us without firing a shot and took us to a nearby German camp to interrogate us. The two scouts, Joe Spera and Spephen Vass, were questioned first and Joe was soon persuaded to answer most of the Germans’ questions. When I refused to answer any of the questions other than name, rank, and serial number, the interrogating German officer asked me in perfect English ‘Do you #*#* Americans really think that you will win the war’? I answered ‘I don’t know if we will or not, but losing me won’t make much difference on way or another.’ This made him mad and he hit me in the face, knocking me down. Throughout the rest of the war, whenever we captured prisoners, I watched for that officer but never saw him again.

“I was starting to get desperate because I knew that, when the Germans had gotten all the information that they could, we would all three be sent to Germany to a prison camp. That night, I finally got the opportunity that I had been waiting for. The one armed guard that the officer had appointed to guard us decided to smoke one of the Chesterfield cigarettes that the Germans had taken from us. When he lit up, I hit him as hard as I could and knocked him out cold. Then I screamed for the other two to run and I ran all-out toward the edge of camp. The German officer ran outside, chasing me while spraying machine-gun bullets all around me! I could hear the bullets hitting around me as I made it over an embankment into the cover of some bushes. They filled the bushes with bullets but I didn’t get hit a single time. When I broke and ran, Spera and Vass just froze, and they remained prisoners. I made it back to my platoon before that night was over and found out that I had already been reported as missing in action. A few weeks later, Spera managed to escape and rejoin our platoon, but Vass was transferred to a German prison camp…we never heard from him again.”

Eventually, Raymond was wounded a second time by shrapnel. While Raymond was being patched up, he allowed a rifleman from his platoon to use his pass to go to town and get a break from the front lines. When the rifleman returned, he had purchased Raymond a 21-jewel GI Swiss wristwatch. Raymond returned to combat, and he let Spera, his friend with whom he had briefly been a POW, wear the wristwatch. As the war went on, Spera was fatally wounded in another battle. A German mortar hit close by, and a piece of shrapnel caught Spera in the throat, slicing his jugular vein. He was trying to tell Raymond something as he died but Raymond could not understand him. The watch stayed on Spera’s wrist; Raymond could not bear to get it back.

During the war, Raymond was part of two beach invasions: one in Italy and one in France. On the way to the southern France invasion, Raymond was assigned to the flagship leading a convoy of ships. The Secretary of the Navy, Forestall, was also on the flagship. During this voyage off the coast of Corsica, Italy, the convoy encountered a German submarine. A British destroyer, which was escorting the convoy, eliminated the submarine. Raymond could feel his ship shaking as the submarine was destroyed.

During the beach invasions, the Soldiers would leave their ship in CPT boats (18 Soldiers per boat), run as close to the beach as possible, drop the gate on the boat, and advance against enemy fire. This was often at the cost of heavy casualties, with some men not even making it to the beach. After a “hot landing” under heavy fire in Southern France, Raymond’s platoon secured their primary target, a set of German anti-aircraft guns located in a concrete bunker on a high bluff, and captured 11 German prisoners. During this incident, the commanding German officer surrendered first. Raymond tried to use what little German language skills that he had learned to warn the officer to tell his comrades to come out and surrender. The German officer then spoke English, attempting to convince the Americans that no other survivors were present. However, after Raymond threatened to throw hand grenades into the concrete bunkers, the German major called for the other German Soldiers to come out and surrender.

Raymond shared a tragedy with me that happened during that battle. As the Soldiers were approaching the concrete bunkers, Rifleman Walsh stepped on a land mine, blowing his leg completely off just above his boot. Raymond immediately jumped up to run through the mind field to Walsh, but Walsh levered his weapon and aimed it right at Raymond. He refused to let Raymond risk coming through the mine field to rescue him. Raymond hesitated, then went anyway; going slowly and carefully to keep from getting blown up himself. They got Walsh out of there, but Raymond never heard whether he survived or not.

Raymond was in active combat for twenty-two months. During this period, his longest battle was 126 days of continuous combat. He received his third and final injury from a German 120mm mortar. During a battle in France, he was pinned in a foxhole with two other Soldiers, and they could hear the mortars getting closer as the Germans were trying to zero in on them. The Germans finally hit their target. Raymond was rescued, still in his foxhole shot all to pieces with the other two men dead. His right leg was blown almost completely apart at his knee, his left leg had caught shrapnel in the thigh, his lungs were punctured, and much of the muscle was blown off from his left arm.

Raymond was carried away on a stretcher in a Jeep to a field hospital, and the moved to the 23rd General Hospital in France. At this time, his surviving comrades thought him to be dead. However, by the grace of God, he somehow survived and succeeded in his fight with doctors to keep his leg after gangrene had set in (his knee was removed and his leg sown back on a few inches shorter than his other one). Major Godfrey, an ex football coach and team physician for the Buffalo Bills, was the initial surgeon for Raymond in France. His prescription consisted of a shot of penicillin and a “shot” of whiskey every two hours. Raymond arrived back at Mitchell Field in New York in a full body cast.

Raymond is one of the most highly decorated veterans in Alabama, receiving most of the honors possible to him other than the Medal of Honor. In fact, a picture of him receiving the Silver Star remains at the state capital in Montgomery. As a result of his military experiences, Raymond was awarded:
• 3 Purple Hearts
• 4 Combat Stars
• One Silver Star
• One Bronze Star
• The Presidential Unit Situation Bar (outstanding battle in combat, awarded by President Harry Truman to the whole platoon)
• Efficiency Honor Fidelity Medal
• European/African/Middle Eastern Campaign Medals
• American Campaign Medal

While looking through papers and memorabilia from the war, his grandson was fascinated to find a document listing the events that lead to Raymond’s award of the Silver Star. The top of the document was headed “RESTRICTED”. The following is the account in the document of the events:

Under the provisions of Army Regulations 600-45, the following individual is awarded a Silver Star for gallantry in action.

Raymond L. Huling, [Service number], Staff Sergeant, Company G, 141st Infantry Regiment, for gallantry in action on 11 June 1944 in Italy. Moving forward in front of his platoon when its attack was stopped by heavy small arms fire, Sergeant Huling, a squad leader, led his men in a renewal of the assault. Encouraging them by his daring disregard of the enemy fire, he directed a furious onslaught against the hostile forces and drove them out of their position. Sergeant Huling personally accounted for two enemy snipers who had attempted to pick off his automatic rifle team. He skillfully deployed his fire power in the most strategic positions, and undertook to fill in a gap in the lines created by the withdrawal of other troops because of the severity of the fighting.

Entering the service from Bridgeport, Alabama.

In 1945, four months after his injury, Raymond was finally united with his wife and two-year-old daughter at Northington General Hospital in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Pat was always fond of telling this incident, and she even recorded it before she passed away:

“His daughter, Nancy Carolyn, was two years old before he ever got to see her. She came with me to finally get to see him at Northington General Hospital in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. She looked at him and said ‘you’re not my daddy; my daddy is a Soldier boy.’ We like to have cracked up then as they both tried to stare each other down. She had carried a picture of him in uniform around so long that she didn’t know him in PJs.”

After several additional operations, Raymond was eventually transferred to Oliver General Hospital in Augusta, Georgia for a series of bone grafts on his right leg. It was there that his wife, Pat, gave birth to their second daughter, Ina Beatrice on November 20, 1946. On August 20, 1947, Raymond was finally well enough to be discharged to come home.

Raymond recovered from his war injuries to the extent that he could live a fairly normal life although his right leg had no knee and was shorter than the left one. He lived in Bridgeport, Alabama with his family. After being dismissed from the hospital, Raymond was notified by the Veterans Administration that he would only receive a temporary 40% disability pension until they received all of his records. Unable to get a job, Raymond started trapping for furs on the Tennessee River. About a week before Christmas 1947, Raymond had trapped 67 muskrats and 4 mink furs, which he sold to a local dealer for nearly three hundred dollars. This provided the girls with a good Christmas. On Labor Day, September 6, 1948, Raymond and Pat were blessed with their third daughter, Sharon Elizabeth. Finally, in March, 1949, Raymond received a letter saying that his records on file showed that he was considered disabled to a degree of 80%. In March 1950, Raymond went to work for the Tennessee Valley Authority, where he enjoyed a thirty-four year career until his eventual retirement.

Raymond told his grandson that a few years ago, he was attending a veterans’ reunion in Montgomery, Alabama when a gentleman approached him and asked his name. The man had been the platoon sergeant for the 3rd Platoon, Company G while Raymond had command of the 2nd Platoon. He then told Raymond, “I saw your name on the roster and had to see if it was really you. I didn’t think it could be…you are the walking dead. I was there when we pulled you out of the foxhole, and I saw you dying.” As Raymond shared this incident with me, he seemed to really grasp and appreciate the extent to which his survival had been miraculous.

Raymond then showed his grandson what was the most fascinating bit of memorabilia from WWII he had ever seen. After opening a chest containing guns, official papers, and articles from the war, Raymond showed him “the flag.” It was a large Nazi flag with a large gash cut through the middle, along with the autographs of the thirty-six members of his platoon written on the flag. Raymond explained, saying that, as his division was advancing through Italy they “had the Germans on the run.” As the Germans retreated from the town of Naples, Italy, one of his men went to the second story of a building and, using his bayonet through a window, removed the flag from the building, cutting it in the process. The Soldier gave the flag to Raymond and he decided to get all of the men to autograph it. Getting only one or two signatures at a time, it took Raymond about two months to get all of the autographs on the German flag. He then sent it home to the states. Raymond’s father-in-law was a postman, and during the rest of the war, various Post Offices took turns displaying the flag. Although more than sixty years had passed, Raymond would look at the names on the flag and say, “this was John Hickman; he was killed by a sniper. This was Henry; he was killed by a land min. This was Claude Splawn; he was killed y an artillery shell.” Raymond’s grandson realized then that the war would never really leave the veterans who gave so much to their country, but it will be a part of them as long as they live.

As Shane sat in a dim living room discussing the war with Raymond, he wondered how much of his time was spent at his home in Fyffe, Alabama, and how much is spent at another place; a place on distant shores where men are really men; living, fighting, laughing, crying, and dying together for the noble cause of freedom. He wondered if the sounds of tanks, machine guns, and that fateful artillery shell fill Raymond’s memories during times alone. Many of us will experience a time when we realize that our time and purpose on Earth is coming to a close. However, very few people will ever look back on the experiences that Raymond endured. He believes that Raymond found comfort in the knowledge that his courage and perseverance did not fail him when he needed it the most. He can also rest in the assurance that God surely protected and delivered him for a reason; Raymond’s purpose on Earth was not yet finished.

Raymond lived with his wife Pat in Fyffe, Alabama until 1997, when God called Pat home. He was an active member of Corinth Baptist church. On 9/11/2009, fittingly the anniversary of the date when our nation sacrificed so much, God called Raymond home. He will be loved and missed by many, and owed a debt of gratitude by all.

Sgt. 1st Class Sean Bennett and Sgt. Daniel Jens are Soldiers and storytellers. Both are gifted musically, and have teamed up to use their talents to share their experiences through music. Both Soldiers recently participated in reality television music competitions, and are now participating in musical tours across the country. Their families, who supported them unconditionally during their deployments, continue to support them as they take to the road and share their stories with audiences who leave with a view on what it means to be a Soldier and what their families go through to support them.

As a member of the 2nd Battalion, 377th Parachute Field Artillery Regiment, Army Airborne Regiment, Bennett deployed to Iraq in September 2006. While serving as the Noncommissioned Officer-In-Charge, he was responsible for helping provide humanitarian aid and medical support to locals in Karbala, Iraq. He remained focused on the mission at hand, even after his unit was ambushed on Jan. 20, 2007. For continuing to lead his fellow Soldiers even after being wounded, Bennett was awarded the Silver Star Medal and the Purple Heart.

Jens completed a 15-month deployment in Iraq from 2006-2008 with the 82nd Field Artillery, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Calvary Division. While deployed, he primarily served as a convoy escort driver and gunner in Baghdad. However, he also served on a four-month special duty with the Criminal Investigation Division guarding family members of a kidnapped Iraqi-American Soldier. Jens was awarded a Certificate of Achievement for volunteering his time to perform for Soldiers while deployed to Iraq.

After returning home, both Bennett and Jens turned to music to help them express the emotional realities of war and provide an outlet for others to understand their experiences overseas. In 2008, just a year after receiving the Silver Star Medal, Bennett was a top-ten finalist on NBC’s “Nashville Star” show, and had the opportunity to sing with Billy Ray and Miley Cyrus. Jens also found the national spotlight when he made it to the Top 20 on NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” in the summer of 2008, after winning the Army’s Blackjack Idol contest while he was deployed.

More than just performers, Bennett and Jens teamed up to collaborate on the song, “Life of a Soldier.” Wanting to provide a glimpse into Army live, the lyrics speak to topics such as leaving one’s family and missing holidays or special occasions. The Soldiers will perform a concert at the Grand Strand Freedom Fest on Sept. 11 in Myrtle Beach, S.C., in support of Military Family Appreciation Month.

For both Soldiers, who have families of their own, the lyrics about leaving behind loved ones hit close to home. Bennett’s daughter, who has watched her father deploy three times, has provided him with support and encouragement throughout his deployments and injuries. He is currently serving with the 320th Field Artillery at Fort Campbell, Ky. Similarly, Jens, a father of three, knows his deployment was hard on his wife, Caroline. However, after he returned home, she found the strength to help other military wives and is currently working on a book about challenges families and marriages face during deployments. The Jens family currently resides at Fort Hood, Texas.

Chaplain (Maj.) Charles Popov is a man answering two calls of duty: one from his country, and one from his faith. After serving as an enlisted Soldier for four years, Popov left the Army to pursue a degree in biblical studies and master’s degrees in seminary studies and counseling psychology. However, in 1999, when he learned that the Army was seeking chaplains, Popov decided it was a perfect way to combine his commitment to serve with his passion for spiritual leadership. Shortly after completing Chaplain Basic Officer Leadership Course at the U.S. Army Chaplain’s Center and School at Fort Jackson, S.C., Popov was commissioned to the Chaplain Corps.

Popov notes that there are both similarities and differences between the roles of chaplain and civilian pastor. While both positions require the minister to act as a shepherd, caregiver and counselor, a chaplain must also be prepared to address the spiritual needs of Soldiers from a variety of backgrounds. While Army Chaplains may personally subscribe to one particular religion, he or she must also possess a wide-ranging understanding of many faiths and practices.

A large part of Popov’s job as chaplain involves ministering to Soldiers in theater. During his deployments to Iraq in 2003-2004 and 2006-2007, Popov was responsible for conducting Bible studies, holding counseling sessions and ministering to the wounded and dying Soldiers. His mission didn’t end at base boundaries. Popov also conducted humanitarian missions, such as providing food, clothing and fuel to Iraqi citizens. One of his fondest memories from his deployment was the chance to work alongside religious and community leaders, known as imams, to build a bridge between Christianity and Islam, including assisting in the rebuilding of mosques that had been destroyed in battles.

During his most recent deployment with the 25th Infantry Division, Popov spent many hours praying alongside over 300 wounded Soldiers from his unit and preformed rites for deceased Soldiers. It was difficult for Popov to balance the Soldiers’ needs for emotional support with his personal mourning of the loss of friends and colleagues. However, knowing that his Soldiers were counting on him, Popov was able to move forward and was able help those within his unit process their emotional struggles through conversation and prayer.

Popov is currently serving as the chaplain for 192nd Brigade, and oversees five battalion chaplains, including one Jewish rabbi. He currently resides with his wife at Fort Benning, Ga., and is a proud father of three grown children and grandfather of two grandchildren.

If you missed the anniversary episode of the You Served Radio Show, you missed a great interview with Gary Winkler, author of “Tortured: Lynndie England, Abu Ghraib and the Photographs that Shocked the World.”

I started reading this book with a load of reservations about it. A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about Lynndie England’s appearance at the Library of Congress being canceled (thankfully). She was supposed to appear to talk about her new book and the Abu Ghraib scandal that defines her life. I made a comment that I hoped she didn’t sell one book. On that post, I got a comment from a man named Gary Winkler. Turns out that England didn’t write a book. She probably can’t spell anyway. Even if she could spell, she’d probably have trouble putting those words together to make a coherent sentence. But, I digress.

I decided to give Winkler the benefit of the doubt and asked for a copy of the book to formally review and an interview. Like I said, I approached this book with a bad attitude, but wanted to give it a fair assessment. I assumed the worst – that Winkler wanted to make England into the victim and we should all feel sorry for her. No book could ever achieve that. Soldiers died as a direct result of her actions!

“Tortured” is the first definitive account about the torture that took place at the Abu Ghraib prison facility that is based off of firsthand information. Winkler had unprecedented access to England, her family and friends in writing the book. It follows a young, tomboyish girl from the hills of West Virginia. In fact, the book actually does do a great job of humanizing England. You learn about her past, which gives you insights into her motivations for joining the military to begin with. So, she morphs from a monster to a humanoid monster!

If I had known England prior to 2003, I probably would have been proud to have her in my company. She was a hard-charging motivated Soldier who loved her country and wanted to make a name for herself – a good name. She wanted to see the world and the military was the perfect vehicle to do that. Then, she met Graner.

Winkler does a great job in narrating how the power of persuasion can turn a idealistic, all-American girl into one of the most hated women in the country. Lynndie goes from sweet and innocent to horrific and slutty all thanks to an older, sick and twisted “man” named Charles Graner. It’s easy to believe that if England had never met Graner, none of us would ever even know her name. She would never have become the face of American torture and the reason behind so much death and destruction in Iraq.

In the end, Winkler does a great job humanizing Lynndie England without giving her an excuse. He doesn’t try to convince the reader that she needs to be forgiven or seen as something she’s not – a saint. He does a very objective job just telling the story of Abu Ghraib and the personalities behind it. I could have done without having to read some of the Graner/England sexcapades, but hey! No book is perfect and they made me laugh at how pathetic England really is to have fallen for some of the crap Graner pulled.

My only beef with this book are the few subtle hints that what happened in Abu Ghraib happened as a direct result of Bush policies. It’s no secret that Winkler isn’t a Bush supporter – quite the opposite, evidenced by his recently started blog. While by no means a major point of the book or even a subplot, there are enough comments about Rumsfeld and Bush having a hand in that mess just grate me the wrong way. If it were true that Rumsfeld and Bush were authorizing torture or even condoning it, why wasn’t it more widely practiced? The truth is much different.

As an interrogator, I was frequently in detention facilities (Abu Ghraib included) and we were all very well versed in the Geneva Conventions and laws of war – just as they were. As a matter of fact, we had ONE incident in Fallujah in which one of the MPs was using a cattle prod on the prisoners to get them to move and we put an immediate stop to it. That was the end of it. Bush and Rumsfeld NEVER encouraged torture and no one can ever convince me otherwise. Unfortunately, the implication is that the actions of England and Graner were condoned by the Bush administration and that is simply inaccurate!

In the end, this is a book that I learned a lot about. I learned a lot about how Lynndie became the monster she is. Winkler doesn’t give her any excuses nor does he attempt to let her off the hook. It’s a quick and easy read that will give those who take the time to read it some valuable insight. As proof that Winkler isn’t trying to whitewash the event, he dedicates the book to those brave men and women of the 372nd MP Company who did nothing wrong. Remember, Abu Ghraib was nearly 300 acres of land and the area where England and Graner were located was but one small slice of that land. Even within the company, the focus has always been on one platoon and the company suffered a bad name because of the actions of a few. As a matter of fact, Abu Ghraib completely ruined all the good the company achieved while assigned to Al Hillah! It’s a shame, really.

The CENTCOM Commander, GEN David Petraeus, receiving the American Legion Distinguished Service Medal during the 91st Annual American Legion Convention in Louisville, KY.