Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
October 19, 2009 By CJ
Posted in Military News, Uncategorized
If you haven’t seen this on Blackfive, you should:
Senators diverted $2.6 billion in funds in a defense spending bill to pet projects largely at the expense of accounts that pay for fuel, ammunition and training for U.S. troops, including those fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to an analysis.
Among the 778 such projects, known as earmarks, packed into the bill: $25 million for a new World War II museum at the University of New Orleans and $20 million to launch an educational institute named after the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Massachusetts Democrat.
Really… Taking money meant for bullets and fuel for soldiers risking their lives in battle so you can build monuments to yourselves…
Have you no shame?
Senator Kennedy lived a free and prosperous life that he had been able to achieve based upon the blood and sweat that everyone like me who has served have used as the currency to pay for that freedom; and yet members of his party feel it necessary to insult me, say that my sacrifices are in vain and that the cause of freedom is no longer something worth buying with the fluids of my precious life.
Read the rest at Blackfive.
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October 17, 2009 By CJ
Posted in Uncategorized
BWE09 is still in full swing as I write this. Day two opened up all the vendors and other exciting events.
Yesterday, Hugh Hewitt did his show live from BlogWorldExpo right next to the military lounge. During the first hour he featured Soldiers’ Angels and Greyhawk from Mudville Gazette. He talked about the upcoming Valour-IT that will raise money to purchase voice-activated laptop computers for wounded troops.
The Mudville Gazette was the first Milblog that Hugh ever read and talked about it on his website years ago, giving credibility and needed publicity to the blogging genre.
The Army is sponsoring a military lounge that is 20′x20′ and features refreshments, including coffee, peanuts, bagels, and danishes. They are also featuring their new website called Army Strong Stories. Real Soldiers from all different jobs and ranks within the Army blog at the site. We’ll be featuring the site in an upcoming You Served Radio Show. In the meantime, check out the site.
I had a chance to meet my favorite YouTube icon, Chad Vader. If you haven’t watched any of the videos, check out their channel. Yesterday, they did a world premier of the next episode. The cliffhanger leads to the series finale next month and features a fight to the death between Chad Vader and his new boss and former apprentice.
We’ve got some great video interviews that will be coming up shortly. I’ve been having connection issues, so will upload them when I get home.
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October 15, 2009 By CJ
Posted in Uncategorized
Sears invites all active military members to register for the Sears Heroes at Home Wish Registry program. The Heroes at Home Wish Registry allows America to thank our military heroes and their families by donating to the program. All donations will be evenly distributed in the form of Sears gift cards amongst all military families and members accepted into the program. Registration will be closing soon so register and review program details at www.sears.com/wish today.
Please spread the word. Last year’s effort was a wonderful success!
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By CJ
Posted in Uncategorized
Troy and I both made it safely to Vegas to speak at the Milblog track of the annual BlogWorld Expo. We are here representing You Served. It’s only 9:15, but already doesn’t seem as busy as last year. Thankfully, it looks like the main effort doesn’t kick off until tomorrow. I was getting worried until I looked through the directory.
The VA Mortgage Center is sponsoring refreshments for the Milblog track and I must say they are DELICIOUS!! Stay tuned here as the conference progresses for updates!!
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October 6, 2009 By CJ
Posted in Uncategorized
After deploying twice to work with the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC), Sgt. 1st Class Patrick McDonald helped coordinate the first and second democratic elections in Iraq. Having seen the progress in election procedures overseas, the Soldier knows the price of democracy and freedom, and it is a liberty that he does not take for granted.
“What we take for granted they often would give their life for,” said McDonald, who has voted in every election since he was eligible. Even while deployed to Iraq during the U.S. Presidential Election in 2008, he recalled voting for the next Commander-in-Chief beside a statue of Saddam Hussein.
While deployed to Iraq from August 2008 to August 2009, McDonald served as the Command Liaison to IHEC, the organization that coordinates all elections throughout Iraq. Similar to the role he played when he first deployed from May 2005 to July 2006, the Soldier was responsible for coordinating security missions surrounding the election and assisting with voter registration, as well as providing subject matter expert support to IHEC leaders. For his meritorious service during his first deployment, McDonald was awarded the Bronze Star Medal.
Reflecting on the change between his two deployments, the Soldier described the considerable progress in the Iraqi election process as “night and day.” He said that prior to 2006, Iraqis were unable to vote freely, and many voters were scared of repercussions. However, when he returned in 2008, McDonald said he witnessed a newfound confidence of the Iraqi citizens when voting.
During his most recent deployment, McDonald was the only Noncommissioned Officer (NCO) in his section and worked with many high-ranking officers, as well as Iraqi government leaders. Using his civilian job experience as the Assistant to Washington’s Secretary of State and his education, McDonald said he worked hard to represent the role of an NCO well. Committed to serving as an NCO and proud of the role he plays in the Army, he hopes to attend the Army’s Sergeants Major Academy in the future.
McDonald serves with the 448th Civil Affairs Battalion at Fort Lewis, Wash. He recently returned to his civilian job and is thankful for the support they provided him during his deployment, including frequently sending care packages and notes of encouragement.
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September 13, 2009 By CJ
Posted in Uncategorized
The morons in the peace movement are at it again.
Authorities say there were a handful of arrests as protesters and counter-protesters gathered at a Northeast Philadelphia mall over the presence of an Army recruiting center that features combat-simulating games.
Dozens of protesters marched into Franklin Mills mall on Saturday to demand the shutdown of the Army Experience Center, a military pilot program. And dozens of counter-demonstrators, many of them Vietnam veterans, also filled the courtyard outside along with about 90 Philadelphia police officers.
The two groups shouted and pointed at each other, separated by a line of police.
Bill Deckhart, coordinator of the BuxMont Coalition for Peace Action, says he doesn’t want his tax money used to expose teens to violence. But Capt. Jared Auchey, a recruiter who works at the center, calls it the modern equivalent of the “Uncle Sam” posters—and he says the same types of games are available at a nearby mall arcade.
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September 9, 2009 By LL
Posted in Uncategorized
The town of Whitewater, after some wrangling with the fear of liability issues, has voted and passed the motion to “donate” $3730.97 to the American Legion to apply towards LT Cull’s repair bill. As of tonight, the total bill was $13,320.97. $9600 of it was for repairing his foundation which the insurance gentlemen at the meeting said was not caused by the sewage backup (from previous experience and data).
LT Cull is still on the hook for $9600 and the local American Legion, Rotary Club, VFW, and other organizations are doing a fundraiser on October 24th.
In the end, this young man needs to focus on the mission, his men, and himself, not this issue. There have been a lot of emails from the city, his friends, and he has a lawyer. He should just come back from missions and worry about his team and decompressing. I hope that between the city’s “donation” and the fundraiser, this can be lifted from his back so he can do his job without distractions.
If there are futher updates, I will let CJ or Troy know so they can post it.
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September 3, 2009 By LL
Posted in Uncategorized
Well, today is my last day as Guest Blogger here at Youserved. For me, it’s hard to write along one vein. I’m very ADD in my writing on my own blog, but I have to say that I’ve truly enjoyed posting here and I hope you got a chuckle or two out of what I had to say or that maybe you learned something new.
Thanks for being great hosts and readers.
Hasta la vista, baby!!
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September 1, 2009 By LL
Posted in Uncategorized
LT Joe Cull is in Afghanistan. He’s a Marine and he’s fighting for our country. About a month and a half ago, there was a sewer backup and it did $20K worth of damage to his home. The city of Whitewater, WI, is saying that they are not liable. According to this article, Kevin Brunner, the City Manager believes it’s out of their hands because the insurance company used by the city will look things over and determine if there will be a payout/reimbursement. All the while, LT Cull is off serving his country and he gets to come home to a huge repair bill.
I say we all sound off and let Kevin Brunner know that his city should step up, help pay for the repairs, and then the CITY can wait for reimbursement from the insurance company instead of LT Cull having to duke it out in some sort of Settlement Hell (and if you’ve ever dealt with an insurance company, you know exactly what I mean by that). Mr. Brunner can be reached at kbrunner@ci.whitewater.wi.us or by phone at 262-473-0500, EXT 200. Be polite, be firm, let him know that his “And doubly so for this poor guy who’s 5,000 miles away, defending us overseas” is a sad way to express his horror and that we all think he should step up and DO WHAT’S RIGHT!
Oh, and bless LT Cull’s heart for not using the fact that he’s deployed as a reason he should be taken care of. He wants accountability because that’s what we, as taxpayers, expect from our city government!!
By the way, I’ve already spoken to CJ about coordinating and contacting some charities to get the repairs paid for in the mean time, so no worries on that front. We’re on the ball!
UPDATE: Let me be clear, charities should NOT have to take care of this. The city of Whitewater should be SOLELY responsible for the cost and prompt repair of LT Cull’s home. I have emailed Kevin Brunner and he responded thusly:
Our community is currently raising funds to assist Lt. Cull with his expenses. A number of service groups as well as individuals have come forward to offer financial assistance. Once a fund has been established I will send you more information in case you too would like to contribute.
UNACCEPTABLE. Absolutely unacceptable.
UPDATE II:The most recent email response:
We are working to help Lt. Cull in every way possible. Our insurance carrier will not pay the claim so our Common Council will be considering direct financial assistance to Lt. Cull.
Keep up the emails and pressure, folks! It’s making a difference.
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August 31, 2009 By LL
Posted in Uncategorized
Tomorrow is the first day of school. My son, I call him Little Monkey, he’s starting within our public school district after attending private school for 2 years, plus summers at the school’s on-site daycare. He’ll know no one at his new place. Even his best little bud down the street will attend a school across town. I feel bad for Little Monkey. He doesn’t adapt to change well at all. And this brings to mind my childhood.
See, I went to school in 9 different school districts from Texas to Korea to Germany before I graduated. I know how scary it is to walk in those doors and see kids happily going where they need to go and lonely little me being totally unfamiliar with the school, the kids, the teachers, the staff. Talk about feeling lost. It’s like stepping off a cliff.
The military kids today have a whole wealth of issues to deal with that I cannot even fathom. When my dad left for “exercises,” it was for a short time and really, he just went to some other base in the US. The Guard and Reserve kids have it the worst, I think. Yeah, they don’t have to move, but they also don’t have the support network around them that active duty brats do. Just being on base with kids like yourself is a huge relief. And that goes for schools too.
But one common theme is being the New Kid. Man, that just sucked. Especially if it was right in the middle of the school year. Not only were there social issues, there were academic ones, trying to mesh the previous school’s curriculum into the new school’s requirements and format. Ugh. Sometimes, you end up covering the same material and sometimes you end up being totally lost as to what was going on. That does not help to adjust at all.
But a strong family network, friends, love, and support can get a kid through this, no matter the age. I know in my family, my grandparents were the Home Base that was the constant in my life. No matter where I was, what I was doing, they were there for me. And I suspect all the kids out there feel the same way about an important person in their lives. As long as there is unconditional love from that home base person, it will all be ok.
To all of those kids, including my Little Monkey, good luck with the new school year. You’ll make good friends, you’ll learn interesting things, and you have your whole life and future ahead of you. Have faith that you will get through this time and you are loved, whether it’s by someone who lives in the same home as you, or by someone who is a million miles away.
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