Memorial Day 2010 - Remembering Our Lost Warriors

I have fought a good fight
I have finished my course
I have kept the faith.

Timothy 2:4:7

I remember the 18-year-old kid from Tennessee who let me use his transistor radio, the baby-faced private from North Carolina with the big grin, the staff sergeant and the two sergeants stretched out in body bags at my feet. All of their names are on the Vietnam wall because they gave their lives for their country.

I also remember one particular lieutenant.

Late in 1970, after several months as an infantry platoon leader, I got sick as a dog one morning after we returned to the firebase. At first the medics thought it was malaria, but it was another miserable jungle virus, and I was laid up in the rear area for about a month. Unfortunately, another lieutenant was sent to take over my platoon.

When I recovered, I asked the battalion commander to re-assign me to another platoon in the field. He said he would let me fill the next platoon leader vacancy. When the lieutenant for the second platoon of Bravo Company rotated back to the States, I politely reminded the battalion commander of his promise.

He was nice about it, but he said he was sending another lieutenant to take over that platoon. I had gotten to know this young officer from our chess games in a firebase bunker. He was a West Point graduate and a career officer who needed the field time, so the commander said I could have the next platoon.

Less than two weeks later, the West Pointer and his men walked up on an NVA bunker complex. Along with several other soldiers, he was killed when a North Vietnamese soldier detonated a Chinese claymore mine. If I had been in command of that platoon as originally planned, I would have been the one killed.

Years later I stood in front of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C. and stared at the engraving of the lieutenant's name. Only a quirk of fate put his name there instead of mine.

There are now those from Iraq and Afghanistan who don’t yet have their own place in Washington, D.C., but whose names will one day appear on a monument for Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. They have sacrificed everything in this new war just because their country needed them.

From Bunker Hill to Baghdad, America’s warriors have given their lives to defend this nation and its allies from those who would enslave or kill our fellow citizens. On battlefields in Iraq, Afghanistan and other countries throughout the world, we continue to lose our sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, fathers and mothers as they protect our way of life with honor and valor.

Those of us who have fought in America’s wars will never forget the faces of our comrades. We will remember them when they were laughing, sharing a meal, missing their families or lying dead in a body bag. They will always be in our hearts and souls.

We hope that, on this Memorial Day, all of you will remember them, too.

Charles M. Grist
www.MyLastWar.com

Gerald Celente's Alarming Forecast for 2010 & Beyond

The only thing scarier than this guy's forecasts is the fact that he has been so accurate in the past. Check out his Trends Research Institute. Google "Gerald Celente" and watch some of his interviews.

Here is a clip from an interview he did with Fox News:



It doesn't sound good, but I'm gonna retire next week anyway!

Charles M. Grist
www.MyLastWar.com

The Hypocrisy of Mexico's President

The disgusting display during the recent visit by Felipe Calderon, the president of Mexico, adds to the sickening feeling in the pit of my stomach about the direction our country is headed.

Calderon had the gall to lecture us on the new Arizona immigration law. He talked down to America in a speech to Congress (and was applauded by the Progressive Democrats). Our own president, in his continuing efforts to diminish his own country, criticized the Arizona law which insulted the majority of Americans who support that law.

And during the news coverage of this visit, where were the comments about the hypocrisy of Mexico whose immigration laws make the Arizona law look like a jaywalking ordinance.

Here are a few key features of the current Mexican immigration law:

1. There will be no special bilingual programs in the schools.

2. All ballots will be in Spanish.

3. All government business will be conducted in Spanish.

4. Non-residents will NOT have the right to vote no matter how long they are in Mexico.

5. Non-citizens will NEVER be able to hold political office in Mexico.

6. Foreigners will not be a burden to the taxpayers. No welfare, no food stamps, no health care, or other government assistance programs. Any burden will be deported.

7. Foreigners can invest in Mexico, but it must be an amount at least equal to 40,000 times the daily minimum wage.

8. If foreigners come to Mexico and buy land... options will be restricted. Certain parcels including waterfront property are reserved for citizens naturally born in Mexico.

9. Foreigners may have no protests; no demonstrations, no waving of a foreign flag, no political organizing, no bad-mouthing Mexico's president or his policies. These will lead to deportation.

10. If you do come to Mexico illegally, you will be actively hunted and, when caught, sent to jail until your deportation can be arranged. All assets will be taken from you.

These are only some of the features of the Mexican law. Check it out for yourselves and pass this information on to your family and friends. We do not need to be lectured to by the Mexican president any more than we need to be talked down to by our own president.

I don't believe I've heard one major media source mention any of this. Have you?

Charles M. Grist
www.MyLastWar.com

Arkansas Cops Murdered During Traffic Stop

From the Associated Press - Another story about cops getting killed while doing their jobs:

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Two Arkansas Policemen Killed After Stopping Van

WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. (May 21) -- Two men armed with AK-47s ambushed and killed two officers who had stopped them on an Arkansas interstate, then died in a shootout with police who had tracked them to a Walmart parking lot, authorities say.

Sgt. Brandon Paudert, 39, and Bill Evans, 38, were killed Thursday while "running drug interdiction" on Interstate 40 in east Arkansas, West Memphis Police Inspector Bert Shelton said. The local sheriff and a deputy were shot and injured in the subsequent shootout, authorities said.

The events started when Evans stopped a minivan with Ohio plates, with Paudert arriving moments later as backup, Assistant Police Chief Mike Allen said. Two men got out of the van with the assault rifles and opened fire on the officers, Shelton said.

"In what was probably only a few minutes, Officer Evans was shoved to the ground and the men in the minivan started shooting at both officers," Allen said. Investigators believe the van then sped away, Allen said.

Paudert, the son of West Memphis' police chief, died at the scene and Evans died at a hospital, authorities said.

Authorities declined to say why Evans stopped the minivan or what was found inside.

Traffic stopped as authorities searched vehicles on I-40 looking for the suspects, who were spotted about 90 minutes later in the parking lot of a nearby Walmart, officials said.

Dozens of officers swarmed the vehicle after a wildlife officer rammed the minivan with his car, and both suspects were shot and killed, authorities said.

During that shootout, Crittenden County Sheriff Dick Busby was shot in the arm and his chief deputy, W.A. Wren, was shot in the abdomen, authorities said.

The two suspects haven't been identified. Arkansas State Police spokesman Bill Sadler declined to say whether investigators knew anything about the men, but said authorities don't believe others were involved in the shooting.

The shootout occurred not far from the Walmart, and Sadler said it was fortunate others weren't hurt.

"With this many people present, somebody was watching over them," Sadler said.

Johnna Long said she was inside the Walmart with her 14-year-old son when she hear some loud pops and people screaming. She said she had received a call a few minutes earlier about a police shooting, and made the connection.

"I couldn't see what was going on," Long said, adding that she and other shoppers were confused because no one knew if the shootings would move inside the store.

Stacy Gilchrist said the scene on I-40 was "chaos." She said she saw a police officer lying in the road when she pulled up.

"It was a disaster, cars were just going everywhere," Gilchrist told Memphis television station WMC.

Hours later at the Walmart, an unmarked, blue police car was parked near the white minivan. The car's doors were open, with blood on the bumper and the asphalt below and bullet holes in the windshield.

Outside the West Memphis Police Department station, officers went in and out, some hugging each other as they passed.

Shelton said the two slain officers were doing the "most dangerous job" in the department because they dealt with drug traffickers.

"They were both very friendly, outgoing, dependable people, and I was proud to call them friends," he said.

Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe said the killings were a reminder of the risks police face.

"I have reached out to express my condolences to the entire West Memphis Police Department, including Sergeant Paudert's father, Chief Bob Paudert," Beebe said in a statement. "This is a loss shared by all Arkansans."

* * * *

Our condolences to the friends, family, and fellow law enforcement officers of these dedicated lawmen.

Charles M. Grist
www.MyLastWar.com

Nation-Building, Time Tables, and Half Wars

I don't always agree with George Will, but he has an interesting analysis on our efforts to build a democratic nation in Afghanistan. This is beginning to look like another "half war". We have all the rules and limitations, but the terrorists have none:

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The Military Tries Nation-Building in Afghanistan

By George F. Will
Sunday, May 9, 2010; A17
The Washington Post

MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, FLA.

When asked whether nationalism is putting down roots in Afghanistan's tribalized society, Gen. David Petraeus is judicious: "I don't know that I could say that." He adds, however, that "we do polling" on that subject. When his questioner expresses skepticism about the feasibility of psephology -- measuring opinion -- concerning an abstraction such as nationalism in a chaotic, secretive and suspicious semi-nation, Petraeus, his pride aroused, protests: "I took research methodology" at Princeton. There he acquired a PhD in just two years: His voracious appetite for knowing things is the leitmotif of his career.

Petraeus thinks he knows that President Hamid Karzai is widely viewed as "the father of the new Afghanistan." Although there was widespread fraud in the election last August that extended Karzai's presidency by five years, Petraeus says "ordinary people are not seized with anxiety about electoral corruption." Besides, "there is a democratic culture in these tribal councils," which are "like caucuses, if you will."

Perhaps, but the limitations of this culture are evident in Petraeus's belief that part of the Taliban's appeal, where it has had appeal, has been its ability to offer "dispute resolution" that is sometimes harsh but at least is rapid. And, Petraeus adds, with an inconvenient candor, the Taliban are sometimes "less predatory" than the Afghan security forces. Although strengthening the central government is a U.S. goal, that government's corruption and brutality might make the localities less than eager for it to be strengthened.

In "The Fourth Star: Four Generals and the Epic Struggle for the Future of the United States Army," journalists David Cloud and Greg Jaffe write that Petraeus, briefing subordinates in Iraq, swirled "his emerald-green laser pointer over pie charts and columns full of data. 'I am going to manage you by slides,' he told his troops." His topics would include "Iraq's sclerotic electricity output . . . bridge and road reconstruction, chlorine supplies at water-treatment plants . . . even chicken embryo imports." And the closing of a bank in a Sunni neighborhood, "a small piece of a broader effort by the Shiite-dominated government to starve Sunni neighborhoods of essential services":

"Petraeus wanted to know: Why had the Shiite finance minister closed the bank? How quickly could the local manager reopen it? How many guards did the bank need and what was the plan to train them?"

This is not the militarization of U.S. policy. Rather, it is the civilianization of the military, an inevitable consequence of nation-building.

Petraeus's desire to know things exceeds the capacity of things that need to be known. But Maj. Gen. Michael Flynn, deputy chief of staff for intelligence in Afghanistan, said early this year that "the vast intelligence apparatus is unable to answer fundamental questions about the environment in which U.S. and allied forces operate and the people they seek to persuade."

Hence the need for different kinds of persuasion, as in this from Petraeus's Iraq guidance: "Employ money as a weapon system." Money can pay local people to build schools and hospitals; money also can buy the "$10 Taliban" -- those who become insurgents just to put food on their tables. Petraeus estimates that at most 30 percent of the Taliban are ideologically fervid.

Counterinsurgency, as codified in Petraeus's writings, is not primarily about killing terrorists, although there is a lot of that. "We have hammered them pretty hard," he says, but "we don't announce every one of them" killed. "The sheer weight of the losses accumulates" -- losses of medical and command-and-control facilities, and sites for manufacturing IEDs (improvised explosive devices).

And counterinsurgency is not primarily about holding real estate. Rather, it is about protecting, and improving the well-being of, the population. This is what he means when he says "the pressure must continue, but not just kinetic pressure."

For America to fail in Afghanistan, against a force lacking air power, armor, artillery or other serious military sinews, would be diminishing. But so might be the costs of protracted perseverance. In President Obama's calculations, those costs must include the danger of another insurgency -- one in his political base.

During his recent visit to Afghanistan, the president said: "The United States of America does not quit once it starts on something." This is not true, nor should it be. Because Petraeus cannot subdue the Taliban militarily in a time frame that American opinion will sustain, Petraeus's challenge is to persuade enough of the Taliban to abandon the fight before the Democratic Party base persuades the president to abandon it.

georgewill@washpost.com

* * * *

President Obama wants to begin pulling our troops out of Afghanistan by July, 2011. The above agenda is very ambitious for the next year, and, of course, we've told the Taliban that we're leaving.

Timetables, well advertised withdrawal, safe havens for the terrorists that we won't invade; where have we seen that before?

Charles M. Grist
www.MyLastWar.com

A Few Interesting Statistics About Vietnam Veterans and The Vietnam War

A fellow Vietnam veteran has forwarded some interesting statistics (below) about us that the average American might not know. Please share this information with the Vietnam veteran in your family.

(The above photo is a young Lieutenant Grist in Vung Tau in 1970. Note the Vietnamese beer, the grenade pins on the boony hat, and the compass in the upper left pocket of the jungle fatigues that is attached with a bootlace. Anyone remember things like this?)

Here is the article from my friend:

* * * *

"Of the 2,709,918 Americans who served in Vietnam, less than 850,000 are estimated to be alive today, with the youngest American Vietnam veteran's age approximated to be 54 years old.

So, if you're alive and reading this, how does it feel to be among the last 1/3rd of all the U.S. Vets who served in Vietnam? Don't know about you, but kinda gives me the chills, considering this is the kind of information we are used to reading about WWII and Korean War vets.

These statistics were taken from a variety of sources to include: The VFW Magazine, the Public Information Office, and the HQ CP Forward Observer - 1st Recon April 12, 1997.

STATISTICS FOR INDIVIDUALS IN UNIFORM AND IN-COUNTRY VIETNAM VETERANS:

9,087,000 military personnel served on active duty during the Vietnam Era (August 5, 1964 - May 7, 1975).

8,744,000 GIs were on active duty during the war (Aug 5, 1964-March 28,1973).

2,709,918 Americans served in Vietnam, this number represents 9.7% of their generation.

3,403,100 (Including 514,300 offshore) personnel served in the broader Southeast Asia Theater (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, flight crews based in Thailand, and sailors in adjacent South China Sea waters).

2,594,000 personnel served within the borders of South Vietnam (Jan. 1,1965 - March 28, 1973). Another 50,000 men served in Vietnam between 1960 and 1964.

Of the 2.6 million, between 1-1.6 million (40-60%) either fought in combat, provided close support or were at least fairly regularly exposed to enemy attack.

7,484 women (6,250 or 83.5% were nurses) served in Vietnam.

Peak troop strength in Vietnam: 543,482 (April 30, 1968).

CASUALTIES:

The first man to die in Vietnam was James Davis, in 1958. He was with the 509th Radio Research Station. Davis Station in Saigon was named for him.

Hostile deaths: 47,378

Non-hostile deaths: 10,800

Total: 58,202 (Includes men formerly classified as MIA and Mayaguez casualties). Men who have subsequently died of wounds account for the changing total.

8 nurses died -- 1 was KIA.

61% of the men killed were 21 or younger.

11,465 of those killed were younger than 20 years old.

Of those killed, 17,539 were married.

Average age of men killed: 23.1 years

Enlisted: 50,274 22.37 years

Officers: 6,598 28.43 years

Warrants: 1,276 24.73 years

E1 (rank of private): 525 20.34 years

11B MOS (Infantry Military Occupational Specialty): 18,465 22.55 years

Five men killed in Vietnam were only 16 years old.

The oldest man killed was 62 years old.

Highest state death rate: West Virginia - 84.1% (national average 58.9% for every 100,000 males in 1970).

Wounded: 303,704 -- 153,329 hospitalized + 150,375 injured requiring no hospital care.

Severely disabled: 75,000, -- 23,214: 100% disabled; 5,283 lost limbs; 1,081 sustained multiple amputations.

Amputation or crippling wounds to the lower extremities were 300% higher than in WWII and 70% higher than Korea.

Multiple amputations occurred at the rate of 18.4% compared to 5.7% in WWII.

Missing in Action: 2,338

POWs: 766 (114 died in captivity)

As of January 15, 2004, there are 1,875 Americans still unaccounted for from the Vietnam War.

DRAFTEES VS.. VOLUNTEERS:

25% (648,500) of total forces in country were draftees. (66% of U.S.. armed forces members were drafted during WWII).

Draftees accounted for 30.4% (17,725) of combat deaths in Vietnam.

Reservists killed: 5,977

National Guard: 6,140 served: 101 died.

Total draftees (1965 - 73): 1,728,344.

Actually served in Vietnam: 38% Marine Corps Draft: 42,633.

Last man drafted: June 30, 1973.

RACE AND ETHNIC BACKGROUND:

88.4% of the men who actually served in Vietnam were Caucasian; 10.6% (275,000) were black; 1% belonged to other races.

86.3% of the men who died in Vietnam were Caucasian (includes Hispanics);

12.5% (7,241) were black; 1.2% belonged to other races.

170,000 Hispanics served in Vietnam; 3,070 (5.2% of total) died there.

70% of enlisted men killed were of North-west European descent.

86.8% of the men who were killed as a result of hostile action were caucasian; 12.1% (5,711) were black; 1.1% belonged to other races.

14.6% (1,530) of non-combat deaths were among blacks.

34% of blacks who enlisted volunteered for the combat arms.

Overall, blacks suffered 12.5% of the deaths in Vietnam at a time when the percentage of blacks of military age was 13.5% of the total population.

Religion of Dead: Protestant -- 64.4%; Catholic -- 28.9%; other/none -- 6.7%

SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS:

Vietnam veterans have a lower unemployment rate than the same non-vet age groups.

Vietnam veterans' personal income exceeds that of our non-veteran age group by more than 18 percent.

76% of the men sent to Vietnam were from lower middle/working class backgrounds.

Three-fourths had family incomes above the poverty level; 50% were from middle income backgrounds.

Some 23% of Vietnam vets had fathers with professional, managerial or technical occupations.

79% of the men who served in Vietnam had a high school education or better when they entered the military service. 63% of Korean War vets and only 45% of WWII vets had completed high school upon separation.

Deaths by region per 100,000 of population: South -- 31%, West --29.9%; Midwest -- 28.4%; Northeast -- 23.5%.

DRUG USAGE & CRIME:

There is no difference in drug usage between Vietnam Veterans and non-Vietnam Veterans of the same age group. (Source: Veterans Administration Study)

Vietnam Veterans are less likely to be in prison - only one-half of one percent of Vietnam Veterans have been jailed for crimes.

85% of Vietnam Veterans made successful transitions to civilian life.

WINNING & LOSING:

82% of veterans who saw heavy combat strongly believe the war was lost because of lack of political will.

Nearly 75% of the public agrees it was a failure of political will, not of arms.

HONORABLE SERVICE:

97% of Vietnam-era veterans were honorably discharged.

91% of actual Vietnam War veterans and 90% of those who saw heavy combat are proud to have served their country.

74% say they would serve again, even knowing the outcome.

87% of the public now holds Vietnam veterans in high esteem.

INTERESTING CENSUS STATISTICS ABOUT THOSE WHO CLAIM TO HAVE "BEEN THERE":

1,713,823 of those who served in Vietnam were still alive as of August,1995 (census figures).

During that same Census count, the number of Americans falsely claiming to have served in-country was: 9,492,958.

As of the current Census taken during August, 2000, the surviving U.S. Vietnam Veteran population estimate is: 1,002,511. This is hard to believe, losing nearly 711,000 between '95 and '00. That's 390 per day.

During this Census count, the number of Americans falsely claiming to have served in-country is: 13,853,027. By this census, FOUR OUT OF FIVE WHO CLAIM TO BE Vietnam vets are not.

The Department of Defense Vietnam War Service Index officially provided by The War Library originally reported with errors that 2,709,918 U..S. military personnel as having served in-country. Corrections and confirmations to this erred index resulted in the addition of 358 U.S. military personnel confirmed to have served in Vietnam but not originally listed by the Department of Defense. (All names are currently on file and accessible 24/7/365).

Isolated atrocities committed by American Soldiers produced torrents of outrage from anti-war critics and the news media while Communist atrocities were so common that they received hardly any media mention at all. The United States sought to minimize and prevent attacks on civilians while North Vietnam made attacks on civilians a centerpiece of its strategy. Americans who deliberately killed civilians received prison sentences while Communists who did so received commendations.

From 1957 to 1973, the National Liberation Front assassinated 36,725 Vietnamese and abducted another 58,499. The death squads focused on leaders at the village level and on anyone who improved the lives of the peasants such as medical personnel, social workers, and school teachers. - Nixon Presidential Papers."

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Now you know that the guy with the "Work for Food" sign next to the overpass is less likely to be a Vietnam veteran than the business or professional person that you deal with every day.

Charles M. Grist
www.MyLastWar.com

I hope you will read my book, "My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq."

American Ranger - The New Road Ahead

Well, the final countdown is on. I will retire from the police department at the end of this month, which means only twelve more workdays because of our 12-hour shifts.

I know I haven’t had many postings on “American Ranger” recently. For that, I apologize. However, I have been re-evaluating how I will handle the blog after I retire. I started it in 2006 in preparation for my last two years on active duty. At that time, I anticipated I would deploy again to Iraq or even to Afghanistan.

Unfortunately, my unit would never release me to deploy, and I spent those last two years training and mobilizing the soldiers who did go to war. Yes, training is an important job, but there is still nothing like being “at the front” with your fellow warriors, doing the job you were trained to do.

Now I will be a retired cop as well as a retired soldier. But I’m still a “full-time” American, so there is always much to be done – even as a civilian. The only thing really happening is that one door is closing even as another opens. This old warrior cop will never really retire.

For now, I plan to spend more time promoting my book, a lot of time writing the next one, and a little time reflecting on where I am in life. I also plan to spend more time with my wife, Debbie, and together we will walk this unknown, exciting path into our future.

Trust me, “American Ranger” will continue. I will continue to support America’s warriors (whether soldiers or cops), and I will work to spread the word of what America is all about. Like most of you, I am concerned about the direction upon which the current administration has embarked. Real Americans will ultimately fix the problem, and that fix must begin with the Congressional elections in the fall.

Thanks to all of you who have read and supported “American Ranger.” Join me in the next phase of my life. Call it “American Ranger Unleashed”, if you will.

The adventure of life goes on.

Charles M. Grist
www.MyLastWar.com