My daughter Jazz is one of these. She was wounded in Bagdad this past summer in a grenade attack. She lost her left eye, lost the hearing in her left ear and has some (thankfully) very slight nerve damage to her left arm.
Posted on 12/22/2004 3:53:28 PM PST by qam1
FALLUJAH,Iraq(Dec. 22, 2004) -- They're labeled the MTV Generation, but very well may be the next "Greatest Generation."
They come from all walks of life - isolated farming communities, Midwest suburbia and large, bustling cities. Some like rap, some like country, some like rock-and-roll.
Much like their counterparts currently attending stateside colleges and working in the local malls, the Marines of 2nd Platoon, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, delve in today's popular culture. They speak the street lingo, dress in the latest fashion, watch MTV and surf the 'Net.
The Marines, many barely through puberty, fail to display the robotic, brainwashed qualities anti-war activists and those not familiar with the military tend to cast on U.S. servicemembers. Just a few days before storming Fallujah, they fervently debated in their barracks on which presidential candidate could best serve their interests as commander-in-chief during the U.S. elections.
Some of the Marines, barely of legal smoking age and few years shy from their first beer, sang their favorite Metallica hits inside amphibious assault vehicles on the outskirts of Fallujah. Others spouted punchlines and catchphrases from Comedy Central's "Chappelle's Show," an attempt to ease the tension and anxiety before storming Fallujah.
They all, however, shared the same fear of walking into concrete deathtraps. The Marines had no problem taking the enemy head on, but the much-talked about intelligence regarding booby-trapped buildings kept the conversation going inside the "tracks," or amphibious assault vehicles.
They shared photos of their girlfriends and wives, and exchanged homecoming plans. They equally complained of the discomfort of two squads inside an AAV, packed like a can of sardines for more than eight hours.
When the order from the interim Iraqi government to take Fallujah was delivered, so did the youthful Marines. They entered together and completed the mission.
Some made the ultimate sacrifice. All will live forever.
For the members of the Greatest Generation, Baby Boomers, Flower Children, Yuppies and Generation X who have any concerns regarding their nation's future, they can rest assured that the young, 1980s-bred Americans fighting in Fallujah will keep America a safe place for future generations.
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I have the greatest respect for these young men. I joined the Army when I was 27 years old. Made sergeant at 30, so I was 13 years older than my youngest squad member and 10 years older than my oldest. We fought and bled together and I was very proud of my youngsters. I lost one and the death of my own son did not leave me more grief stricken than losing a soldier to the enemy. They both hurt just the same.
I pray for our young men and women and their safe return everyday.
Their "anti-War" counterparts do, however ,display a tendancy for mind numbed robotics,don't they?
AMen.
Everytime I hear someone speak about how worthless the younger generation is I think about those young men and women in uniform on foreign soil giving their lives for freedom and our safety.
They are 1,000 times better, smarter and more patriotic than my generation -- you know, we hippies who fixed the educational system, the judicial system and everything our predessors ruined (sarcasm).
Most of the people I know in their teens, 20s and 30s are conservative. They are 10 times smarter than I was at their age.
And those in Iraq and Afganistan volunteered to go there, with many joining the military after 9/11. Maybe my generation finally did something right by bearing these great men and women (they are probably great because they rebeled against their nutty parents).
Chills down my spine....Good chills that is... They know it is sacrifice yet the walk head on and face the challenge... I guess all of Gen X/Y are not slackers as they want us to belive. :)
Have a blessed Christmas FRiend.
They already are.
The men and women serving are the greatest, but hardly representative of the generation that hardly even showed up to vote in the presidential election, which makes those who are serving all the more remarkable and heroic.
Went into Hastings this evening to pick out some gifts. Two young Marines were in there in uniform with their girl friends. I believe they were raw recruits, just out of boot camp. They looked so young, I almost gasped. I was curious and pondered saying something to them, but refrained. I realize now that a simple "Thank you for serving your country" would have sufficed.
They are so young! I saw one today with his wife and their son(my grandson) they adore. Thank you is all one can say. I took a lot of pictures and was also a bit short on words.
And those in Iraq and Afganistan volunteered to go there, with many joining the military after 9/11. Maybe my generation finally did something right by bearing these great men and women (they are probably great because they rebeled against their nutty parents).
Amen! However I was not a nutty parent, I was conservative always, my daughter is also, that prooves that I at least did something right.
Post #14 was addressed to me. He was another troll pedaling the standard left-wing line about young men needlessly dying for Bush's oil war. Suffice to say I was furious when I read it. AdminModerator removed it and the poster.
(blood pressure returning to normal...)
Popular culture would have us believe that back in the 60's everybody was protesting Vietnam and smoking dope. The fact of the matter is that at the same time there were a bunch of geeks in white shirts and ties with slide rules putting men on the moon.
The same people that belong to Generation X have sat by watching their peers defeat communism and now battle Islam's extreme elements.
The reality is that this country will always have those who do nothing and those who we owe our freedom to. Those of us in the latter group know what the reality is and don't really want any help from the former group.
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