Remembering The Troops At Thanksgiving

As we gather with our family and friends to celebrate another Thanksgiving, don't forget the troops who make it possible for us to enjoy this day in peace and safety.

Please say a prayer for the thousands of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen who are in harm's way. Without their sacrifice - and the sacrifice of their families - this world would be a very different place....

Charles M. Grist
Author of the award-winning book My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq

Super Committee Failure Will Gut The Military - Maybe That Was The Plan All Along

The Congressional "super committee" has failed to come up with a measly 1.2 trillion dollars in savings over the next ten years. This will trigger a military budget reduction of over five hundred billion dollars beginning in 2013. Even Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says this will lead to a hollow force.

My Democratic friends will argue the point, but I think this may have been the liberals' goal in the first place. They have always wanted to cut defense spending, so they managed to get enough foolish Republicans to vote in favor of the ridiculous twelve-person "super committee." All they had to do was ensure failure to trigger the automatic cuts in defense.

The Republicans even offered some revenue increases in an attempt to reach an agreement, but Democrats want mostly revenue (read that tax) increases. They also don't want to discuss reforming Social Security or Medicare in order to protect the long-term viability of those programs. Of course, the Democrats will blame the Republicans for the failure of the "super committee." The reality is that the Obama administration and the Democrats are willing to compromise - but only if you do it their way.

It's beginning to look like this "super committee" was set up to fail from the beginning. Now the left may have what they wanted all along, a reduction of America's military strength that will result in mothballed ships and planes, shuttered military bases, cancellation of modernization projects, and the "firing" of thousands of Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen.

The Iranians are laughing.....

Charles M. Grist
Author of the award-winning book My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq

The Iranians Must Be Stopped - They Are The Nazis Of The Middle East

The Iranian Army - They even march like Nazis

In the months leading up to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the majority of Americans were still in favor of neutrality. This was after the Germans had conquered most of Europe and while the Japanese were marching across Asia. Had the Japanese not attacked America on December 7, 1941, who knows what it would have taken for us to enter World War II?

Today, the Nazis of the world are the Iranians. The leaders of that regime are as crazy as Adolph Hitler was, and they have turned Iran into the most dangerous nation on the face of the earth.

Why are they more dangerous than a resurgent Russia that is beginning to resemble the old Soviet Union? Why are they more dangerous than a gigantic nuclear power like China? What makes Iran a greater danger to peace than even the North Koreans?

Not only do the Iranians support brutal terrorist groups around the world (Hamas, Hezbollah, the Muslim Brotherhood, the Mahdi Army and others), they are religious zealots who believe they are living in the end times. In the old days of the cold war, Russia and China were kept at bay by the doctrine of mutually-assured destruction. In other words, they wouldn't try to destroy us because they knew we would also destroy them. This won't work with Iran.

According to the leaders of Iran, their own messiah, the 12th Imam or the Mahdi, is on the earth now, preparing for the final battle that will result in the imposition of Islam upon the rest of the world. They also believe that anyone who dies in the furtherance of this objective (whether men, women, or children) will be martyrs.

The Iranian willingness to sacrifice innocent lives was displayed clearly during the Iraq-Iran war of the 1980's. Civilians, including children, were sent into minefields to clear the way for Iranian soldiers. Do you think they would be bothered by the deaths of millions of innocents as long as they could complete the destruction of Israel, the United States, or other nations that opposed them?

The choice facing the world is not an easy one. Do we allow a fundamentalist Iran that wants to dominate the world to possess nuclear weapons, or do we take whatever action is necessary - including military force - to prevent this from happening?

Remember that Germany was trying to developing a nuclear weapon, an air force with jet aircraft, and other significant capabilities. If they had not been defeated when they were, this world might be a very different place, if it still existed at all.

Taking on a conventionally-armed Iran will be tough enough, and there will be both humanitarian and economic costs to bear. But that cost will be a thousand-fold greater if we must fight a nuclear-armed Iran. After all, they will also give that weapon to all of the terrorist groups listed above. That will add an unlimited number of nightmare scenarios to the existing terror threat.

I'm not sure what our government really knows about how close the Iranians are to completing their quest for a nuclear weapon.

But they better stop them before they do....whatever it takes.......

Charles M. Grist
Author of the award-winning book My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq

The Haunting Bagpipes of "Sgt. MacKenzie" - From "We Were Soldiers"

Those who saw the movie "We Were Soldiers" will remember this solemn bagpipe music. Here it is in full with an English translation:



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God bless the fallen warriors...

Charles M. Grist
Author of the award-winning book My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq

Veteran's Day 2011 - Honoring America's Warriors

Please take time today to honor America's veterans. We live our daily lives in safety and security because of their service and sacrifice.

To my fellow veterans who served with me in Vietnam, to those who served with me in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and to those who served with me at home and abroad, thank you for being my brothers and sisters in arms.

May God bless all of America's veterans, and may He continue to bless the United States of America.

Charles M. Grist
Author of the award-winning book My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq

Happy 236th Birthday to the U.S. Marines

I had the great honor to serve with Marines from Vietnam to Iraq. Their courage, sacrifice, and devotion to honor is second to none. Without the Marines, this world would be a very different place.

Happy birthday to all Marines, and thank you for protecting America for 236 years.

Semper fi!

Charles M. Grist
Author of the award-winning book My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq

Iraqis Will Determine Their Own Future - With A Little Help From Iran

The Mahdi Army

The problem with nation-building is that America tries to create countries in the Middle East that mirror our democracy. Why, you ask, would people who have suffered under dictators not want to embrace the glory of Jeffersonian democracy?

We have not learned since Vietnam that, regardless of our best intentions, when we put soldiers on the ground in Asia or the Middle East, those soldiers become the issue. Westerners still evoke images of the Crusades among the Arab people (or colonialism among the Asians as well as the Arabs). After all, when arrogant westerners enter backward nations, we have all the answers don't we? Even as we perform deeds of generosity and heroism, we are resented for our very presence. Have you once heard the Iraqi government thank America or its soldiers for their freedom and for our sacrifice?

When I was in Iraq in 2004, the lowest ranking soldier knew that the Iraqis didn't want us there. We had removed the Sunni dictator and freed the Shiites from oppression. We expected the Sunnis to hate us, but the Shiites didn't like us either. The radical Shiite militias like the Mahdi Army, led by Muqtada Al Sadr, fought us and killed our soldiers. The ungrateful bastards have continued to express hatred for us, and many of the casualties we suffered have come at the hands of the Shiite militias.

And, yes, even in the early stages of Operation Iraqi Freedom, we saw the influence of the Iranians in the rockets and weapons from Iran that were used against us. After all, even though the Iranians are Persians and not Arabs, they are Shiites too. Muqtada Al Sadr and other radical Iraqis have spent much time in Iran, preparing for the day when the Americans have gone home.

Our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines have performed courageously during Operation Iraqi Freedom, just as the veterans of Vietnam did during my first war. As in Vietnam, Iraq's future will not be determined by us, but by the citizens of that nation. And 60% of Iraqis are Shiite.

The sad truth is that, while we liberated an oppressed people, we removed Iran's most hated enemy, Saddam Hussein. They no longer have to worry about him because their Shiite friends are in charge of Iraq. In some ways, Hussein was a counter-balance to Iran, and an expensive line item in their defense budget. That is no longer the case.

In my 2009 book, My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour In Iraq, I discussed the 2008 Status of Forces agreement that mandated our departure from Iraq by the end of 2011. I have never believed that agreement would be extended or re-negotiated. I also predicted that the Mahdi Army was simply waiting until we left. Then they will begin the effort to complete their real agenda which is the creation of another Islamic theocracy.

The Iraqis want us gone, the Shiite militias want us out of there, and as long as one American boot is on the ground, our soldiers will remain the targets of these Islamic fundamentalists. It doesn't really matter whether we leave in 2011 or 2021. Once we are gone, the Iranian influence will increase, and there's nothing we can do about it.

The following video interview with Muqtada Al Sadr explains his hatred of the Americans and the fact that his Mahdi Army will attack any American forces that remain in Iraq.

This man is as evil as his Iranian sponsors, and he should have been taken out in 2004.

The following video is from the Middle East Media Research Institute:

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Charles M. Grist
Author of the award-winning book My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq

Occupy Movement Protesters Need To Go Home

Enough is enough already. You wanted to exercise your right to free speech? You have done so. Local governments should have given your group a permit for three days or so. After that, you clean up your mess and go home. You want to come back later for another demonstration? Get another three-day permit.

The only exception is when you violate the law. Break city, county, state or federal laws, cause violence against anyone, damage any property, then you go to jail, the permit is revoked, and the demonstration is over. And that's the way it should be in a country that protects the rights of the individual, but does not permit those rights to infringe upon the rights of others.

The politicians who have given open-ended permits for these "events" have helped feed the fires of violence for reasons of political expediency and because of political cowardice. Give the anarchists, socialists, and communists enough time, and they will become the issue of any large demonstration. Then you get the broken windows, the fires, the rapes, the thefts, and all those little extras that come along with out-of-control mobs.

Remember this: At some point, someone is going to be killed by one of these punks, and the politicians who permitted or supported these seemingly endless demonstrations will share the blame with the criminal who commits such a heinous crime.

This Occupy Movement has also run some small enterprises out of business. While the local governments were playing politics with the mess, the punks and thugs were destroying the livelihoods of innocent people. In addition, the costs of these mob actions will fall on average every day taxpayers who are sick and tired of watching a bunch of hippies and bums have a party at their expense.

The Occupy Movement has burned out whatever welcome it might have had. It's time to revoke the permits and send these loudmouth fools on their way.

Enough is enough...

Charles M. Grist
Author of the award-winning book My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq

The Imprint of War - It Shall Be With You All Of Your Days

You remember everything about it. It's always with you, just below the surface. You think about some part of it several times a day. Why does a warrior remember his life at war? Because he left part of his soul on the battlefield. He also saw many of his friends for the last time on that same battlefield, and he shared with them the agony of their last moments on earth.

You can't describe it to those who haven't experienced war. When you meet a fellow war veteran, no words are really necessary. The eyes say it all; the tired eyes with a unique depth to them. The eyes that have seen the very worst of mankind when they peeked into the very depths of hell.

After I watched the preview below, I became hopeful that this might finally be the documentary that accurately told the story of my fellow Vietnam veterans and me. We shall see, but at least it will give you another chance to understand what makes us who we are.

After all, we were the first generation of American warriors to be scorned upon our return. Following my own bad experiences with anti-war "hippies" in airports in San Francisco and Atlanta, I arrived home only to take my uniform off and not put it on again for almost ten years.

Then, when I returned from Iraq in 2004, it was terrific to see that this generation has been welcomed with open arms by those they protected. I was finally able to come full circle as a Vietnam veteran. I only wish all of my fellow 'Nam vets could have had the same experience.

Now this generation will also have the imprint of war on their souls. And it will be with them for each and every day of the rest of their lives.

"There are some events that are so overwhelming that you can't simply be a witness, and it will be with you all of your days...." From Vietnam in HD and The History Channel.



Charles M. Grist
Author of the award-winning book "My Last War: A Vietnam Veteran's Tour in Iraq"

The Danger Of A Lame Duck Obama

Barack Obama's first term (and hopefully his only term) as president has been a failure of epic proportions. His only real accomplishments have been the deaths of Osama bin Laden and other terrorists, none of which would have happened had he not continued the policies of George W. Bush.

Now we are only a year away from determining if this man will have four more years to implement his agenda to "fundamentally transform" America. Up until now, he has had to walk the middle ground so that those in the middle (independents and conservative Democrats) would continue to support him. Their support is diminishing, but it is still there. However, if re-elected, he won't care whether he has anyone's support. Without an election looming in the future, he will surely go as far as he can to create the "Socialist States of America."

A lame duck Obama will expand his "executive orders" to such areas as gun control, the media, and other venues that will make it possible for him to stifle dissent. He will use the regulatory authority of his "czars" to add more anchors to the business community. We will have less exploration of our own energy resources, we will see (as we are now) that Obamacare will begin to destroy the best health system in the world, and we will continue to see America's status in the international community erode to such an extent that other nations will lose what little respect they still have for us.

As we become weaker economically and militarily, our enemies will become even bolder. Our friends will be threatened, and Obama will surely do nothing of substance. He has failed to slow the Iranian march to nuclear weapons, he has involved us in the "Arab Spring" which has furthered the gains of Islamic fundamentalists, he has shown disrespect for our allies such as Israel, and he has given our enemies a timetable for our disengagement from Afghanistan.

Barack Obama is as poor a leader and as inefficient as was Jimmy Carter. The only difference is that Obama knows exactly what his long range plans are; Jimmy Carter didn't have a clue.

I don't know who the forty-something percent of Americans are who still support Obama. But if this many Americans are clueless to his failures and his intentions, then we are indeed a nation in peril.

Please involve yourselves politically to make sure Barack Obama is a one term president.

The future of the Republic depends on it.

Charles M. Grist
www.MyLastWar.com

The "Arab Spring" Is Not About Democracy - It Is About Islamic Fundamentalism

Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt

As we have watched the Muslim Brotherhood become the dominant force in Egypt, we have also seen the newly "liberated" Tunisian people create an Islamic fundamentalist government. This is only the beginning.

Libya has also announced it will abide by Shariah law and that polygamy will be legal - scaring the hell out of Libyan women. Of course the Libyan rebels are being nice to America right now. They want more of our money. But this cozy relationship will not last.

Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya will become Islamic fundamentalist nations influenced by the new rise of the Muslim Brotherhood, as will any other countries that fall victim to the Arab revolutionary fervor. All of them will become aggressive with Israel and, ultimately, more aggressive with us. Their eventual best friend will be Iran, the most dangerous country on the face of the earth.

The Obama administration is living in a fantasy world to believe that the Arab revolutions will be anything other than replacing one dictatorial regime with another. The Muslims do not believe in equality, liberty, and the worth of the individual. Just as socialists and communists subvert the individual's rights for the benefit of the government, so do the Islamic fundamentalists.

The storm in the Middle East is just beginning. With Iran close to becoming a nuclear power - and with no one doing anything to stop it - we are almost to the point of no return. With nuclear weapons, the Iranians really will be the Nazis of our generation, determined to mold the world in their own way as they destroy anyone who opposes them. And they will share those weapons with their fundamentalist friends.

Remember that the Iranian government has publicly stated that they believe the world is in the end times, that the 12th Imam (their Messiah the Mahdi) is on the earth, that it is their duty to destroy Israel and the United States, and that their generation will impose Islam on the world.

What do you think they will do with nuclear weapons when they have them?

Charles M. Grist
www.MyLastWar.com