Cpl. Jeffrey Starr
Posted on 09/01/2005 2:22:05 AM PDT by Saynotosocialism
In August, Brian and Shellie Starr of Snohomish received a final message from the son they lost on Memorial Day.
In plain view on a desktop computer returned to the United States by 22-year-old Cpl. Jeff Starr's fellow Marines was a letter he had composed for his girlfriend. It was to be read if he did not return.
"Obviously," he wrote, "if you are reading this, then I have died in Iraq."
On his third deployment to Iraq since the war began in March 2003, Starr was well-acquainted with war's horror and uncertainty. Starr rubbed shoulders with death in April 2004, when he and 13 other Marines, trapped behind enemy lines in Fallujah, fought off several hundred insurgents for several hours until reinforcements arrived. Starr planned to leave the Marines in August. He wanted to go to college, to marry his sweetheart.
Instead, Starr came into the sights of an enemy sniper during fighting in Ar Ramadi on Memorial Day. A corpsman who tried to save him wrote Starr's loved ones afterward that the young Marine was shot through his left shoulder. The bullet crossed his chest and struck his heart. Starr never regained consciousness.
Although other families across the nation last month privately sorted and wept through the things carried to war by sons and daughters, husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, the Starrs and their son's girlfriend shared publicly what he wanted known.
"Dearest ----
I'm writing this for one reason only. On April 13th 2004, I thought I was going to die. My only regret is that I hadn't spent enough time with you. That I hadn't told you everything I wanted to. Being in Iraq for a 3rd time, I don't want to feel that way again because it was the worst feeling ever.
"So this letter is in case I won't ever get the chance to tell you," he wrote.
Starr believed in what he was doing, but knew he could die.
"I kind of predicted this, that is why I'm writing this in November. A third time just seemed like I'm pushing my chances.
"I don't regret going, everybody dies but few get to do it for something as important as freedom. It may seem confusing why we are in Iraq, it's not to me. I'm here helping these people, so that they can live the way we live. Not have to worry about tyrants or vicious dictators. To do what they want with their lives. To me that is why I died. Others have died for my freedom, now this is my mark.
"Well I can't type forever, I know you want to read more but I thought simple and to the point would be easier.
"I love you with all my heart.
"Goodbye my Love."
While the Starrs received their son's last words, five other families of servicemen and -women with local ties received the dreaded knock on the door from military casualty officers last month.
Washington state's price of war last month grew to 115 casualties -- 105 in Iraq, 10 in Afghanistan. Nationwide, U.S. fatalities in Iraq neared 1,900 since the war began in March 2003. More than 200 American servicemen and -women have been killed in Afghanistan since the war there began after 9/11.
In Iraq, Pfc. Nils G. Thompson, 19, of Confluence, Pa., a member of Fort Lewis' Stryker Brigade, was killed in Iraq by a sniper Aug. 4, a day after his birthday.
Spc. Jose L. Ruiz, 28, of Brentwood, N.Y., one of Thompson's fellow Stryker Brigade soldiers, was killed Aug. 15 in combat, leaving behind a wife and 9-month-old daughter.
Sgt. Todd Partridge, 35, of Natchez, Miss., a military policeman from Fort Lewis, died Aug. 20 in an explosion from a roadside bomb. He left behind a wife and two girls, ages 11 and 9.
In Afghanistan, Sgt. Robert G. Davis, 23, of Jackson, Mo., with Fort Lewis' 555th "Triple Nickle" Movement and Enhancement Brigade of combat engineers, was killed Aug. 18 near Kandahar when a roadside bomb blew up under his vehicle. He left behind a wife and son.
Killed with him was 1st Lt. Laura Margaret Walker, 24, of Texas, the first Fort Lewis woman to perish in Afghanistan. Walker was a 2003 West Point graduate from a family steeped in Army tradition. Her father, Col. Keith Walker, is chief of staff of the 1st Cavalry Division from Fort Hood, Texas. One of her grandfathers was the commanding general of Fort Lewis. A brother graduated from West Point this year; another is with the military academy's class of 2008.
Walker was buried at West Point last Thursday.
After completing 15 months as a highly regarded platoon leader, Walker recently was named public affairs officer for Task Force Pacemaker, the construction effort in Afghanistan to build a key 75-mile highway. In Web and newspaper articles, Walker described the construction as a peaceful enterprise that Taliban insurgents feared would unite Afghans, especially as that country's elections draw closer in September.
"An interpreter and a female soldier are always included in the security detail, available to assist with communication or searching local national females," she wrote of guarding the highway's construction.
"These measures have resulted in a 100 percent success rate; not a single Pacemaker soldier has been attacked while working on the road."
P-I reporter Mike Barber can be reached at 206-448-8018 or mikebarber@seattlepi.com.
Incredible. I just came to this thread after reading about the looters and shooters in NO, and I was beginning to wonder if the human race in general - not to mention Americans in particular - was really worth saving. And then I read this: true nobility. Thanks.
"I don't regret going, everybody dies but few get to do it for something as important as freedom. It may seem confusing why we are in Iraq, it's not to me. I'm here helping these people, so that they can live the way we live. Not have to worry about tyrants or vicious dictators. To do what they want with their lives. To me that is why I died. Others have died for my freedom, now this is my mark.
God bless this man's soul and his familiy and loved ones.
I've posted the following a few times and hope the rpeat will be excused. This was originally printed in a daily devotional that my Mom gave to my Dad as he was shipped off on a minesweeper to the Pacific in WW II. The book is called “Strength for Service to God and Country”. This devotional was for SEPTEMBER 11.
Written by Dovert Walton McElroy, First Christian Church, El Paso, TX.
CHOSEN TO SUFFER
“They therefore departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the Name.” (Acts 5:41).
All of us are called upon to suffer in one way or another. Much of our suffering goes to waste because it is not geared up with an all-compelling purpose. A great cause, such as liberty, chooses men who are big enough to suffer, men who “can take it.” It chooses men who have the stuff in them to endure hardships; who can laugh at privations; who are willing to give up privileges, comforts, and ease. It chooses men like the apostles who, after being treated in a most shameful way and cruelly flogged, came from that experience rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer for the name of Christ.
Great causes have a way of choosing men who are worthy to suffer. And it is through men that suffer that great causes come to victory. The highest blessings that we enjoy today came in this way. Christ on the cross, Washington at Valley Forge, Lincoln baited by newspapers and even by his cabinet members, and a few among many who were chosen to suffer for great purposes and were found worthy – bringing victory to the cause that chose them.
In these days, the great cause of liberty is again choosing men to suffer for its sake. Shall we who are chosen be found worthy?
Prayer:
Our Father, we are being called upon to suffer for the sake of all men everywhere. The great cause of liberty, with all that it means, is calling for men who are worthy. Wilt Thou make us worthy in every way. Keep the high purpose of freedom upper-most in our hearts, and cleanse us from all selfishness. Dedicate us anew to the high cause of world brotherhood, and give us the victory of an enduring peace. And so shall our suffering be not in vain. In the Spirit of Christ we pray. Amen
ping
Cpl. Jeffrey Starr
You'll need a d-container of tissues for this one.
I am so proud of all these young people, they have honor and love of country that I thought was lost by my generation. I will forever pray for everyone of these brave men and women. "The next greatest generation".
Grief is what I feel reading this. And a thought I am afraid will make me unpopular: are these Iraquis worth dying for? Dying for America is one thing, but these islamic fanatics? I confess I don't know, but I am beginnng to have doubts. Afghanistan I see had a direct link to our safety. Iraq I thought did, but that has been reduced to a less clear and present danger than first thought. Either we send in massive troops and really end this thing, or more of our good soldiers will be picked off. Less you think I am a "Cindy", no, I am not. She repulses me. But, among Freeper friends, I am free to say, is it time we got out? Because those people over there...they see things as Muslims do, not as judeo christians do...and so are they worth dying for?V's wife.
I salute you, Cpl. Jeffrey Starr, for being twice the man that I will ever be.
God bless you, Jeffrey.
-Riptides
Very powerful.
As I see it, our military are not dying for the Iraquis, but for the concept of freedom. Unfortunately, freedom is an abstract concept that becomes all too real in the living of daily life. My concern is not that the Iraquis seem so far from appreciating our concept of freedom, but that we as a nation are growing so far from our traditional concept of freedom---in these ways:
---private property ownership
---PC, kneejerk reaction to "separation of church and state"
---a willingness to be "cared for" instead of taking responsibility
---a general malaise about the political class and what they are doing to us--seems most people just say hohum or believe ABC,NBC,CBS.
IRAQ did have WMD, as fully accepted by most of the natiions of the west,but the more important reasons for taking out Saddam was his breaking the agreement he signed on to after Gulf War 1, and his cheating of his own people and the world on the Oil for Food
fiasco. You may recall that he was shooting at our aircraft daily; he was spending the Oil for Food money on bribing France, Germany et al, and buying military supplies (remember the fleet of MIGs buried in the desert sand? He had to go. Unfortunately, the media worldwide just wants war to go away and treat the US as a terrible war monger, while ignoring genocide in Sudan and other African nations, and the spreading of terrorism in the name of Allah or some other excuse for spreading death and economic disaster. The most unfortunate thing is the inability of so many people to understand the underlying truth the Founding Fathers understood---FREEDOM ISN'T FREE. It has never and will never be achieved by passivity and inverted rhetoric.
Believe Teddy Roosevelt's encomium---"Walk softly and carry a big stick." The modern lib version has been changed to "walk softly and just understand why your enemies hate you."
vaudine
ping
must read ping
re Post #9......You asked, so I will give my 2 cents:
Yes, I believe it is worth it, for two reasons at least:
I have no disagreement with the reasons for your thoughts. You're not a sell-out for having them. Actions, however, are critical.....as in joining "Cindy".
Actions are a different thing.
First reason to stay: The majority of Iraqis want what we're trying to help them achieve. They want to vote and elect their own representatives. Remember how they flocked to the polls even though they were threatened.
Also, as part of the first reason, is that the whole world believed Saddam was a threat. He did have those weapons once, and never reported their destruction. He stymied inspections, and never would have let the inspectors back in, had not the US forces been massed just outside his country. Even then, he jerked us around, denying U2 flyovers, etc. He, himself, through his obstinance and pride, provided the last straw. (I think he's crazy, in some real sense. He fired his lawyers recently.)
Saddam also invaded Kuwait, and was poised to invade Saudi Arabia. There were plenty of good reasons to get rid of him.
Taking out Saddam and coming home would have left Iraq to certain civil war. The first Bush withdrew support from some CIA-trained Iraqis when our idea was to dump Saddam after the first Gulf War. Many Iraqis whose loyalty was not with Saddam were wiped out because we reneged on our support. GWB couldn't let that happen again. It was his mission to support post-Saddam Iraq.
That's the first reason, IMO.
The second reason involves the Middle East itself, and the Islamicists/jihad, and all that. Remember the folks that said, "We HAVE to win!"? They're still right. Iraq sits in the very center of Islam. It could have been a potent source for terrorists and terrorism....and will be, if we're not successful. We have to win.
Winning will be a huge blow to the cause of terrorism and spread of Islam. A solid defeat of the Islamicists will prove that they are not invinceable behind the Koran. A democratic Iraq, stable and peaceful (ideally), will cause/allow them to live a more modern lifestyle, more compatible with the rest of the world, and not so narrowly restricted per the dictates of Sharia, etc.
Iraq is the model to the whole world. The taliban withstood Russian efforts to hold political control in Afghanistan. The same mountains that were so much trouble to the Russians were not that troubling to the US and its allies, and the country was restored to the Afghan people, who set up a democracy. They also lined up to vote in great numbers.
Democracy will work if we can help get it established. Democracy means self-government and pride in that self-government. Democracy also means Peace.
That's the second reason.
If one believes that, "We have to win!" really is relevant, the sacrifices made to get there won't be any less painful, but perhaps being able to look at the whole picture will make the losses seem more understandable.
Thank you both for your very respectful replies. Good points. Now, if the mission is to win, ought we not deploy more? Secure the Iraq borders, and ID the insurgent areas and then just bomb the hell out of them? I have a friend-Lt.Col from Desert Storm, his reasoning is that the Marines tend to fight an old style war, whereas the Iraqui Gulf I was a "new" style war-carpet bombing and so on. Is this a good point? V's wife.
Thanks for the ping!
"I don't regret going, everybody dies but few get to do it for something as important as freedom. It may seem confusing why we are in Iraq, it's not to me. I'm here helping these people, so that they can live the way we live. Not have to worry about tyrants or vicious dictators. To do what they want with their lives. To me that is why I died. Others have died for my freedom, now this is my mark.
ping
The human answers may be "no", but Jesus gave the faithful the reason to:
Luke 6:32-36
32 "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' love those who love them.
33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' do that.
34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to 'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full.
35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.
36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
The fact that "they aren't worth it" makes our sacrifice for them a reflection of Christ's love. Because honestly, I wasn't worth Christ sacrificing himself for, but he did it anyway.
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