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WATCH: Obama Calls For The Closing Of Guantánamo Bay Prison, An End To Post-9/11 Mentality

April 30th, 2013 12:58 pmJason Sattler

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President Obama called for the closure of the detention camp at Guantánamo Bay and encouraged the use of federal courts to prosecute terrorists, during a press conference in the White House Briefing Room Tuesday morning.

“Well, it is not a surprise to me that we’ve got problems in Guantánamo, which is why, when I was campaigning in 2007 and 2008 and when I was elected in 2008, I said we need to close Guantánamo,” the president said, in response to a question about the ongoing hunger strike at the camp that has been reportedly joined by more than 100 prisoners.

“I continue to believe that we’ve got to close Guantánamo,” he said. “I think — well, you know, I think it is critical for us to understand that Guantánamo is not necessary to keep America safe. It is expensive. It is inefficient. It hurts us in terms of our international standing. It lessens cooperation with our allies on counterterrorism efforts. It is a recruitment tool for extremists. It needs to be closed.”

Obama issued a presidential memorandum calling for Guantánamo to be closed in 2009.

However, both Republicans and Democrats resisted moving the prisoners to a facility inside the United States. The 2011 Defense Authorization Bill prohibited ”the use of funds to modify or construct facilities in the United States to house detainees transferred from United States Naval Station, Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.” The president signed the bill but announced that he would try to repeal or mitigate these restrictions in the future. Obama’s critics have pointed out that even if the president has objected to the camp’s location, he still supports the “core injustice” being practiced there: indefinite detention.

The president insisted Tuesday that the continued use of the camp was not sustainable.

“I mean, the notion that we’re going to continue to keep over a hundred individuals in a no-man’s-land in perpetuity, even at a time when we’ve wound down the war in Iraq, we’re winding down the war in Afghanistan, we’re having success defeating al Qaeda core, we’ve kept the pressure up on all these transnational terrorist networks, when we’ve transferred detention authority in Afghanistan — the idea that we would still maintain forever a group of individuals who have not been tried — that is contrary to who we are, it is contrary to our interests, and it needs to stop,” he said.

He then articulated the argument his government has made implicitly in the way it handled the arrest of the Boston bombing suspect: The federal justice system can handle terrorists who attack the United States.

“I mean, we’ve got a whole bunch of individuals who have been tried who are currently in maximum security prisons around the country,” he said.

“Nothing’s happened to them. Justice has been served. It’s been done in a way that’s consistent with our Constitution, consistent with due process, consistent with rule of law, consistent with our traditions. The — the individual who attempted to bomb Times Square — in prison serving a life sentence. Individual who tried to bomb a plane in Detroit — in prison serving a life sentence. A Somali who was part of al-Shahab [sic] who we captured — in prison.”

He went on do a quick genealogy of how America got into this situation. “And I understand that in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, with the traumas that had taken place, why, for a lot of Americans, the notion was somehow that we had to create a special facility like Guantánamo, and we couldn’t handle this in — in a normal, conventional fashion,” he said. “I understand that reaction.”

But he then suggested it’s time to phase out that approach.

“But we’re now over a decade out,” he said. “We should be wiser. We should have more experience at — in how we prosecute terrorists. And this is a lingering, you know, problem that is not going to get better. It’s going to get worse. It’s going to fester.”

The president also addressed the potential use of chemical weapons in Syria — something he has said would be a “game changer” in the conflict. Here Obama again sought to contrast himself with the post 9/11 mentality by stressing caution on evidence related to weapons of mass destruction.

“And what we now have is evidence that chemical weapons have been used inside of Syria, but we don’t know how they were used, when they were used, who used them; we don’t have chain of custody that establishes what exactly happened,” he said. “And when I am making decisions about America’s national security and the potential for taking additional action in response to chemical weapon use, I’ve got to make sure I’ve got the facts.”

If the regime of Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad had indeed used such weapons, the president did not promise a direct military conflict. Instead he said that “we would have to rethink the range of options that are available to us.”

Fox News’ Ed Henry, who asked about Syria, also confronted the president with discredited rumors his channel has been circulating that survivors of the Benghazi attacks were being prevented from speaking to the public. Obama said he would look into them.

Responding to a reporter who asked about a comment from Senator Max Baucus (D-MT) that Obamacare’s implementation is looking like a “train wreck,” the president pointed out that a huge chunk of the law was already in effect, helping millions of Americans.

“But I think the main message I want to give to the American people here is despite all the hue and cry and, you know, sky-is- falling predictions about this stuff, if you’ve already got health insurance, then that part of ‘Obamacare’ that affects you, it’s pretty much already in place,” he said. “And that’s about 85 percent of the country. What is left to be implemented is those provisions to help the 10 to 15 percent of the American public that is unlucky enough that they don’t have health insurance.”

The president closed his press conference by saying he largely supports the immigration reform bill that has come out of the Senate’s “Gang of Eight.” But he came back to the mic to comment on Jason Collins, who became the the first active athlete in one of America’s four major professional sports leagues to admit he is gay.

“I think America should be proud that this is just one more step in this ongoing recognition that we treat everybody fairly,” he said. “And everybody’s part of a — part of a family, and we judge people on the basis of their character and their performance, and not their sexual orientation. And so I’m very proud of him.”

VVA Veteran

Fur, Fangs, & Feathers: The Assorted Petsof American Servicemen in Vietnam
BY MARY BRUZZESE
For most of the young American men and women serving in Vietnam, it was often a lonesome experience. They were homesick. Days were filled with long hours of tedium or the terror of combat. Tight friendships offered a great deal of relief. Many also turned to pets.
Vietnam was crawling with animals. Stray dogs and cats wandered through cities and village streets and skulked around base camps and firebases. Exotic animals were taken by servicemen from the jungles or else purchased from Vietnamese vendors. Whether owned communally or by individuals, pets were almost always a group experience. Sometimes the animals were named the unit mascot. But most often they were simply companions.
Pets varied from the domestic—dogs, cats, goats, pigs—to the exotic—monkeys, mongooses, birds, snakes. Soft, lovable animals were most common, especially dogs and monkeys. But even not-so-cuddly animals such as snakes and hawks provided calm and relief—or at least entertainment.
There were problems, of course. Animals can carry and spread parasites and diseases. Also, pets were not immune to the dangers of war. Many were killed, fell ill, or died in accidents. Unlike in contemporary wars, in nearly all cases those serving in Vietnam had to leave their beloved pets behind.

MAN’S BEST FRIEND
Not surprisingly, dogs were the most common pets in Vietnam. Dogs generally crave human attention, so strays hung around even remote firebases. Servicemen and women knew that some Vietnamese ate dog meat, a fact that was hard—so to speak—for many to swallow. Some took in or purchased dogs with the intention of rescuing them from becoming a meal. Often, too, dogs simply forced their way into the men and women’s lives.
Brian Jones’s dog Kilo adopted him while he was serving as a company clerk with the Army’s 1st Signal Brigade’s Command Communications Company in Long Binh. “I just opened my hooch door one morning, and there she was,” Jones said. Her owner from another company came and got her. But over the next several days she kept coming back. Finally the owner said to Jones: “She loves you, so keep her.” Jones and Kilo became inseparable. Kilo slept under his desk in the company orderly room while he worked, rode shotgun in his jeep, and ate with him in the mess hall.
Like Kilo, many dogs became regular members of a group. Sometimes they were even given official titles or dog tags. They often accompanied the men everywhere and ate and slept with them. Richard Grube had a dog, Sugar, while serving as an ambulance driver with the 3rd Field Hospital. Sugar rode along with him in his ambulance and watched John Wayne movies with him and the rest of the guys. “When we’d boo the bad guys,” Grube said, “she’d bark with us.”
Andy the bloodhound, the mascot of the 615th MP Company “Bloodhounds” in Long Binh, was flown to the unit from the States with a group of scout dogs. Upon his arrival, he was greeted by an MP honor guard and escorted to the unit. He eventually was promoted to the rank of honorary captain.
Andy attended all change-of-command ceremonies and rode patrols with the MPs. Being one of the boys, he even received the same punishments. Andy had a habit of running away. Once found, he would be taken to the Long Binh Provost Marshal’s office, where his offense was recorded and he was slapped with an Article 15. Andy’s naughty nature was used to break in the newbies, who had to give him baths and take him for walks—not an easy task, as Andy enjoyed chasing Vietnamese civilians on the post.
Frank Gale, who served with Detachment 7 as a helicopter door gunner with the Ha(L)-3 Seawolves, had a dog, Squiggles, who was his constant companion. She would greet him and his crew at the helicopter pad the moment they landed after returning from missions. “Having that dog brought normalcy to my life and those who were on the Detachment,” Gale said. “She had a calming effect on all of us and was something we could express love to and get instant feedback from. Important for guys who were flying into harm’s way every day.”
Many who had pet dogs in Vietnam said they reminded them of home, either because they had grown up with dogs or simply because of the constant company and love. Don Dodson, who had a dog, Ward, while serving with the 4th Infantry Division Band, said his dog “helped us cross the huge mental divide from ‘back in the world’ and Vietnam. It was a therapeutic reminder of home.”

MONKEY BUSINESS
Monkeys were also common pets. Monkeys, like dogs, can make very loving pets. Some were sold in markets, although others were simply found. Anthony Finocchio was serving with the 1st Cavalry in Ahn Khe when he found a small baby monkey that had been left behind in the jungle. Finocchio picked him up, put him in his pocket, and took him back, where he fed and cared for him. Once the monkey was older, he tried to set him loose in the jungle, but he wouldn’t leave. “That’s why we called him ‘Chief,’” Finocchio said. “Because he did whatever he wanted to do.”
Being primates, becoming one of the guys was especially easy for monkeys. They often joined in drinking parties. Phil Germond described his pet monkey Mojo, whom he had while serving with the 44th Med. Brigade in Long Binh, as “a connoisseur of Schlitz beer.” Will Abshire’s monkey George enjoyed beer so much that, Abshire said, “Upon hearing a beer can open, George would jump on the arm of the soldier opening the can and demand his sip.”
Some monkeys were not pleasant drunks. Michael Harris came across a pet monkey while serving with the Navy Mobile Riverine Force, Task Force 117 in the IV Corps Tactical Zone. “I loved playing with him,” Harris said, “but if his eyebrows raised up high, then you knew that he was mad. He bit me on many occasions. He would actually drink beer with us. The bad part was that he was a mean drunk. We’d know by his eyebrows.”
Sweet Pea, a monkey in Dave Miles’s company area at LZ Snoopy while he was serving with C Company, 39th Combat Engineers, also bit when she was irritated. “Sweet Pea was a very playful monkey until you turned to walk away from her,” Miles said. “She would grab you by the thigh and bite you on the buttocks. The 39th Engineers’ CO was visiting our LZ one day and noticed Sweet Pea. Naturally, he thought she was cute and played with her for a while. When he turned to walk away, Sweet Pea bit him on the ass.”

PYTHONS, AND HAWKS, AND BEARS, OH MY!
Many species were kept as pets. The 559th Squadron of the 12th Tactical Fighter Wing at Cam Ranh Bay had a small black goat named Cadet C.L. Masters as a mascot. The 1st Platoon of the 192nd Assault Helicopter Company had an especially unusual mascot, a de-scented skunk named Waldo. Waldo had joined the platoon at Fort Riley in 1967. He traveled with the company across the Pacific from California to Cam Ranh Bay. “He caused quite a stir when he was allowed to take a walk on a leash aboard the ship,” Bill Lorfing remembers. When the unit moved to its first station, Phu Hiep, Waldo was “promoted” to E-4.
Birds were often kept as pets. John Dorn remembers a pet duck he encountered while serving with the 101st Airborne and 5th Special Forces. As Dorn was helping the Big Red One load deuce-and-a-halfs and materiel onto C-130s, he said, “one of the guys walked up to me and asked if they could bring their mascot on the plane. I asked what it was. He replied with a loud whistle, and to my surprise, here came a white duck. That duck walked up the ramp of that C-130 like he owned it and fluttered up onto one of the deuce-and-a-halfs.”
While serving with the 86th Combat Engineers in the 9th Infantry Division in the Delta, Gary Smith found a hawk with a broken wing. He threw a shirt over the hawk to capture it, and nursed it back to health. “In the beginning, it just wanted to claw or bite me,” Smith said, “but eventually it came around to accept me helping it.” Smith frequently took the hawk out to exercise its healing wing. One day it took flight and left.
Native mongooses were common pets. While serving with the 24th Evac. Hospital, Louis Ciaglia carried his pet mongoose Cynthia around in his pocket or on his shoulder. She slept under his bunk or at his feet. “We spent many a day just hanging out together,” Ciaglia said. “She was a great friend at a bad time.”
Don Roach remembers that when he was serving with the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Bien Hoa, the unit’s mascot was a bear named Yogi. She was fairly tame and friendly. They would let her walk around during the day, but at night she slept in a large cage. “One night a guy didn’t leave her cage secure,” Roach said. “The bear got out, came into my hooch while I was sleeping, and drooled on me. I woke up and the bear was standing over me, mouth wide open. It scared the living terror out of me.”
Snakes were often kept as pets, especially pythons, which are indigenous to Vietnam. Indeed, pythons were more local than most would have cared to know, as Jack Shannon found out while serving with MACV Advisory Team 50. “One night during the summer our Mekong Delta compound came under attack,” Shannon said. “Rudely awakened from my sleep, I attempted to make it to the safety of a bunker. Because of the havoc and debris in the air, the bunker seemed a bit too far away. I took shelter in a small dugout. Something like the Loch Ness monster arose in the darkness and looked me straight in the eye and froze me all the way to my nether parts.
“I spent some time locked by the gaze of those obsidian eyes, and slowly came to the realization that I was caught in a foxhole with a snake. Deciding if it was safer in or out of the hole was a difficult call. Neither of us had made a false move, so I stayed—and so did the snake.” After their surprise meeting, “we became friends,” Shannon said. He kept the snake, who was apparently of very mild temperament, and named him Nate.

JAW-DROPPING FUN
Pets’ antics provided lots of entertainment. Monkeys in particular, with their surprisingly human-like behavior, gave the men plenty of laughs. JoJo the monkey hung around with Dave Marmet and Charlie Company, 1/18th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division at Di An. “I remember him jumping onto the back of a dog and riding him around like a little jockey,” Marmet said. “Seems like he was always doing something funny, and I enjoyed the laughs. It was nice to get my mind off what was going on.”
Pete Petrosky and his friend Robert Skaggs had a monkey, Bill, while serving with the 3rd Transportation Squadron motor pool in Bien Hoa. During a celebration on the Fourth of July they lit a firecracker and put it next to Bill to tease him, but the monkey picked it up and put it in his mouth like a cigarette. When they all yelled, “No, Bill!” he dropped the firecracker and it went off. Perhaps in revenge, Bill ran over to Petrosky and bit him.
Snakes also provided plenty of entertainment. Watching them feed was a particularly popular event. Chris Green and others attended many feedings for Sam, the python who lived on a patio at the MACV building in downtown Ben Tre. “Many an early evening we would spend on the patio as the housekeeper placed an unlucky live animal in Sam’s cage,” Green said. “With cocktail or beer in hand, we watched the morbid scene, a prey-and-predator dance, as Sam maneuvered his eight-foot length, waited, and finally grabbed and squeezed the frantic hen or duck.”
The 2nd “Snake” Platoon, 101st RRC at Engineer Hill was so nicknamed because of its pet Burmese python Dufas, whose weekly feedings became very popular, Tino Banuelos remembers. “We received word that one of our high-ranking officers and a local VIP would be visiting at the time of our next feeding,” he said. “This did not sit well with the men of the Snake Platoon, because the only time we were visited by personnel from the headquarters was for some type of inspection. When they showed up, the snake was found to have a large lump, which indicated that he had eaten a chicken the night before the visit. This made our visitors upset, because they knew that there would be no chicken-eating show.
“Even so, another chicken was dropped into the crate. The chicken ran around and squawked, but the snake took no interest in it. Finally the visitors went back to the airbase and off to Davis Station after a stern lecture about sabotage and respecting protocol.”
Dufas was not the only pet to disrespect a VIP. The 4th Infantry Division Band dog, Ward, accompanied the unit wherever they went, Don Dodson said. One day the band headed to the airfield at Camp Enari. “We were all sweating like crazy, waiting for some grand pooh-bah to step off the airplane,” Dodson said. “Everyone was in formation, and Ward was wandering around sniffing. Out in front of the band was the general’s photographer, squatting down on his haunches. Ward came up behind him and did what dogs do to mark their turf.
“Being as the photographer was sweating, he didn’t immediately recognize that his right buttock had been liberally moistened. Ward wandered away, and a minute or so later the guy jumped up, grabbed his butt, and let out a very loud oath. Those were the wonderful moments that kept us all somewhat less insane while in Vietnam.”

ON WATCH
Dogs, aside from being the best companions, often also served as lookout. With their superb hearing and sense of smell, dogs could often sense danger or intruders long before their human owners. Joseph Giannini’s puppy Red Baron could hear incoming rounds before the men could. When Red Baron suddenly started running, the men knew to duck for cover.
Pets often helped with pest control. Don Dodson’s dog Ward was fond of hunting rats. Some pet mongooses also hunted rodents. Bill, Pete Petrosky’s pet monkey, helped keep the spider population down in his hooch. Bill enjoyed going up into the rafters to hunt and eat them. Petrosky would even rent Bill out to men in other hooches so he could eat their spiders.
Before he grew up to become the Snake Platoon’s major attraction, Dufas the python had a different job. The platoon had a serious rat problem. One night Spec 5 McMann was woken by a rat sniffing his ear, and decided he’d had enough. He and a couple other men went to Saigon and purchased Dufas as a juvenile. They brought him back and released him down a rat hole. “Within a day or two,” Tino Banuelos said, “there were no rats scurrying around. Dufas had scared off those he could not catch.”

CASUALTIES OF WAR
Some pets were injured or killed by the enemy. Fred Stevens had a terrier named Butch while serving with Bravo Company, 523rd Signal Battalion, Americal Division. One day Butch walked into a trip-wired booby trap and lost a leg and a tail, and sustained internal injuries. Butch was fortunate, though, in that the Americal’s veterinarians in Chu Lai were able to tend to his injuries and save him.
Stanley, the canine mascot of Headquarters Troop, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment’s Scout Section, often rode along on jeep convoys. On one ride with Jeff Williams, however, they were hit by an enemy Claymore and both were ejected. Williams was only slightly wounded, but Stanley suffered severe shock and permanent nerve damage.
Many pets were killed or injured in accidents. Jose Hernandez’s kitten Knudsen, at the 1st Marine Air Wing in Chu Lai, was accidentally stepped on. His injuries were so severe that he did not survive. “It was so sad,” Hernandez said, “because everyone loved him.” John C. Terrel said that when his dog Ralph was run over by a jeep, “I lost my best friend and companion.”
While serving with the Army Nurse Corps at the 85th Evac. Hospital, Judy Katz adopted a kitten, Dig It. The nurses’ compound was fenced, so Dig It had the run of the area. One day, however, a gate was left open and a stray dog got in. “The dog attacked my sweet little cat and broke her back,” Katz said. “It was so pitiful. She cried and cried, as did I, and we had to give her an overdose of anesthesia to put her to sleep.”
Aside from carrying fleas and other parasites—which could infest the men and women and their living spaces—pets could also succumb to and even spread disease. While serving with the Marines in Da Nang, Sal Esposito’s puppy Cong fell ill, possibly with distemper, and died. “I think of that time and being helpless to aid him, and tears come to my eyes even now,” Esposito said.
One of the gravest concerns was rabies. In many cases orders were given to get rid of all pets due to the threat. When Dennis Walden was serving with the 554th Engineer Battalion, a dog, Blackie, was looked after by several men at Thunder III Firebase near Chon Thanh. The unit had to move to Bao Loc, and due to worries over rabies they were not allowed to take any pets along. The dog had never been inoculated. One GI tried to smuggle Blackie when they moved out, but it was discovered by a company commander, who shot the dog on the spot.
There were incidents involving pets contracting rabies. Thomas E. Sommerhauser, while serving with the 2nd Battalion Mechanized, 2nd Infantry of the 1st Infantry Division, returned to the battalion perimeter one day to find the unit’s pet dog Bierbaum lying on his side with his mouth foaming. Following standard operation procedure, Sommerhauser called his platoon leader to ask permission to use a .45 to put the rabid dog out of his misery. The platoon leader did not authorize it. “And so it fell on me to brain the pup with a log,” Sommerhauser said. “For about a week hardly anybody would talk to me.”
When Mike Najarian was serving with the 14th Service Squadron, 14th Air Commando at Nha Trang Air Base, the unit had a very friendly dog, Charlie. One day, after a movie was shown, Charlie hunkered down under the projector and would not come out. Someone tried to pull her out, and she bit him. It turned out that she had rabies and had to be put down. The man she bit had to undergo a series of painful rabies shots.

NOT GOING HOME
Unlike the men and women serving in today’s wars, who often arrange to take their wartime pets home, that was virtually unheard of in Vietnam. Brian Jones and his dog Kilo were inseparable in Vietnam. He said that leaving Kilo behind was one of the hardest things he had to do—and hard for the dog, too. A buddy had to hide Kilo so that she would not follow Jones off the base when he left for home.
Most handed their pets down to a buddy when it was time to return home. Will Abshire’s monkey George made the choice for him. “My fondest memory of George was seeing other soldiers’ faces light up when they first saw him,” Abshire said. “George was a godsend. He was friends with everyone.”
But one day George disappeared. A couple of days later, a soldier came up to Abshire with George on his arm, asking if it was his monkey. “I saw the way George was holding on. From the look of his fatigues, I could tell the soldier had not been in country for very long,” Abshire said. “I told him the monkey’s name was George, and he could have him. I could see that George was happy with his new friend. As they walked away, George never looked back. I knew that was the right time to let go.”
Tony Molina luckily was able to send his dog Itty Bitty home. He received permission to go to Saigon and ship her home, and had no problems getting the necessary paperwork from the Vietnamese government. Molina had to pay $200, and Itty Bitty was given the necessary shots and shipped to his parents in California.
It was more complicated for A.P. McDonald to get his dog Newt home. As his DEROS date neared, McDonald started to think about taking Newt home. He knew a veterinarian and passed the idea by him. About a month later, the veterinarian told him, “I doubt you’ll be able to pull it off. But if you do, you will need this,” and handed him legal entry papers he had signed, stating that the dog had been quarantined. McDonald had a 1st Marine Aircraft Wing press card stating that he could commandeer rides on any aircraft as a combat photographer. He knew that if he could get to Saigon, he might be able to ship Newt to the States.
With his future replacement covering for him, McDonald started hopping rides to Saigon with Newt. He had typed up fake papers that appeared to be orders to have the dog transferred to Saigon for further training as a scout dog. Despite a few suspicious officers along the way, they made it to Saigon.
Once he arrived at the airport, McDonald found out he needed Vietnamese export papers to send Newt home. He went to the office where he needed to get the papers. McDonald was carrying his “blood money”—five $20 bills. He put all five bills on the counter. The man smiled, shook his hand, and signed the papers.
McDonald took Newt back to the airport and had the dog shipped to his mother in Indiana. McDonald’s mother picked Newt up, and McDonald was reunited with him when he returned home. Newt later traveled around the United States with McDonald in a motorcycle sidecar, and he lived to a ripe old age.
But the vast majority of Vietnam veterans had to leave their wartime pets behind. Most carry the memories of their friends even today—warm, pleasant memories that counter other, bad memories of their time in Vietnam.
Peter Beisser’s dog Lady at the 11th ACR often alerted him to the presence of Viet Cong, thus making him feel safe having her around. Beisser has a photograph of Lady, which he enlarged upon returning home. “It has hung in my hair salon for more than thirty years,” he said, “so that I can still see her every day and have that safe feeling.”
Although Sal Esposito still suffers the pain of his pup Cong’s untimely death, pleasant memories remain, too. “He was so adorable and full of love,” Esposito said. “I cannot help but smile when I think of his playfulness. So many memories of that time in country come and go. Here, about forty-seven years later, that pup is still fresh in my mind.”

boycott this movie

Parts of this have been around before, but some of the specifics I haven’t seen.  She is indeed a traitor.

 

 

 

"In the end, more than freedom, they wanted security. They wanted a comfortable life and they lost all--security, comfort, and freedom. When the Athenians finally wanted not to give to society but for society to give to them, when the freedom they wished for most was freedom from responsibility, then Athens ceased to be free and was never free again".

Edward Gibbon
British Historian

Subject:  BOYCOTT THIS MOVIE

What a slap in the face to the Reagans, a disgrace. If Ronald Reagan were alive I bet he would rather poke his eye out with a punji stick than have Hanoi Jane associated to his name,  What were the studios thinking? I for one will boycott this movie. Pass it on and lets NOT FORGET!  Ron R. Subject: BOYCOTT THIS MOVIE Hanoi Jane! What a disgrace to Mrs. Nancy Reagan! Boycott this movie! America, we must not forget! JANE FONDA                                  NANCY REAGAN This cannot go around too much. Those of us that were living in those years will never forget that she was a traitor and did a lot of damage to our boys. She has now been chosen to play Nancy Reagan in her life story. I am sending this one out because so many do not know this truth...  and also because she was on 3 times this week talking about her new book... And how good she feels in her 70's... she still does not know what she did wrong..her book just may not make the best list if more people knew...  also...  Barbara Walters said:  Thank you all. Many died in Vietnam for our freedoms.  I did not like Jane Fonda then and I don't like her now.  She can lead her present life the way she wants and perhaps SHE can forget the past, but we DO NOT have to stand by without comment and see her "honored" as a "Woman of the Century."  (I remember this well)  For those who served and/or died. . ..  NEVER FORGIVE A TRAITOR. SHE REALLY WAS A TRAITOR!!  and now President OBAMA wants to honor her......!!!!  In Memory of LT. C.Thomsen Wieland who spent 100 days at the Hanoi Hilton [Famous North Vietnam Prison] IF YOU NEVER FORWARDED ANYTHING IN YOUR LIFE FORWARD THIS SO THAT EVERYONE WILL KNOW!!!!!!  A TRAITOR IS ABOUT TO BE HONORED.  KEEP THIS MOVING ACROSS AMERICA   This is for all the kids born in the 70's and after who do not remember, and didn't have to bear the burden that our fathers, mothers and older brothers and sisters had to bear.  Jane Fonda is being honored as one of the '100 Women of the Century.'  BARBARA WALTERS WRITES:  Unfortunately, many have forgotten and still countless others have never known how Ms. Fonda betrayed not only the idea of our country, but specific men who served and sacrificed during the Vietnam War.  The first part of this is from an F-4E pilot.  The pilot's name is Jerry Driscoll, a River Rat.  In 1968, the former Commandant of the USAF Survival School was a POW in Ho Lo Prison the ' Hanoi Hilton.'  Dragged from a stinking cesspit of a cell, cleaned, fed, and dressed in clean PJ's, he was ordered to describe for a visiting American 'Peace Activist' the 'lenient and humane treatment' he'd received.  He spat at Ms. Fonda, was clubbed, and was dragged away. During the subsequent beating, he fell forward on to the camp Commandant 's feet, which sent that officer berserk.  In 1978, the Air Force Colonel still suffered from double vision (which permanently ended his flying career) from the Commandant's frenzied application of a wooden baton.  >From 1963-65, Col. Larry Carrigan was in the 47FW/DO (F-4E's). He spent 6 years in the ' Hanoi Hilton'...the first three of which his family only knew he was 'missing in action'. His wife lived on faith that he was still alive. His group, too, got the cleaned-up, fed and clothed routine in preparation for a 'peace delegation' visit.  They, however, had time and devised a plan to get word to the world that they were alive and still survived. Each man secreted a tiny piece of paper, with his Social Security Number on it, in the palm of his hand. When paraded before Ms. Fonda and a cameraman, she walked the line, shaking each man's hand and asking little encouraging snippets like: 'Are n't you sorry you bombed babies?' and 'Are you grateful for the humane treatment from your benevolent captors?' Believing this HAD to be an act, they each palmed her their sliver of paper.  She took them all without missing a beat.. At the end of the line and once the camera stopped rolling, to the shocked disbelief of the POWs, she turned to the officer in charge and handed him all the little pieces of paper...  Three men died from the subsequent beatings. Colonel Carrigan was almost number four but he survived, which is the only reason we know of her actions that day.  I was a civilian economic development advisor in Vietnam , and was captured by the North Vietnamese communists in South Vietnam in 1968, and held prisoner for over 5 years.  I spent 27 months in solitary confinement; one year in a cage in Cambodia ; and one year in a 'black box' in Hanoi . My North Vietnamese captors deliberately poisoned and murdered a female missionary, a nurse in a leprosarium in Banme Thuot , South Vietnam , whom I buried in the jungle near the Cambodian border. At one time, I weighed only about 90 lbs. (My normal weight is 170 lbs)  We were Jane Fonda's 'war criminals....'  When Jane Fonda was in Hanoi , I was asked by the camp communist political officer if I would be willing to meet with her. I said yes, for I wanted to tell her about the real treatment we POWs received... and how different it was from the treatment purported by the North Vietnamese, and parroted by her as 'humane and lenient.'  Because of this, I spent three days on a rocky floor on my knees, with my arms outstretched with a large steel weight placed on my hands, and beaten with a bamboo cane.  I had the opportunity to meet with Jan e Fonda soon after I was released. I asked her if she would be willing to debate me on TV. She never did answer me.  These first-hand experiences do not exemplify someone who should be honored as part of '100 Years of Great Women.' Lest we forget....' 100 Years of Great Women' should never include a traitor whose hands are covered with the blood of so many patriots.  There are few things I have strong visceral reactions to, but Hanoi Jan e 's participation in blatant treason, is one of them. Please take the time to forward to as many people as you possibly can.. It will eventually end up on her computer and she needs to know that we will never forget.  RONALD D. SAMPSON, CMSgt,  USAF 716 Maintenance Squadron,  Chief of Maintenance DSN: 875-6431 COMM: 883-6343  PLEASE HELP BY SENDING THIS TO EVERYONE IN YOUR ADDRESS BOOK. IF ENOUGH PEOPLE SEE THIS MAYBE HER STATUS WILL CHANGE.

just thought i would share before and after shots

Before at 368 lb 

After at 273.4 lb

Vietnam Veterans

Did you Knows this

GOOD NEWS

The Nation : Copies Found of VA Records Lost in Fire

June 24, 1988
The Veterans Administration announced the discovery of 10 million military medical records that duplicate some lost in a devastating 1973 fire, and said it will review disability claims that were rejected because of the lost files. Thomas K. Turnage, the VA administrator, said the agency became aware of the records last week and said that it was too early to tell how many people would be affected. The fire at the National Personnel Record Center in St. Louis, Mo., destroyed or seriously damaged 18 million military personnel records from 1912 through 1959 for Army personnel, and 1947 through 1963 for Air Force personnel with the surnames of Hubbard and through the letter Z. The duplicate records cover the years 1942 to 1945 and 1950 to 1954, and so will primarily affect veterans of World War II and the Korean War. The records were collected by the National Research Council, a private research organization, during the 1950s as part of its analysis of Army hospital records.

Navy work uniforms

thought i would what th enew navy uniforms look like please click on the link below

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B11axbziSq-Ea2I4NndBT2E2d2s/edit?usp=sharing