Posted on 07/27/2006 6:53:33 PM PDT by Albion Wilde
WASHINGTON, DC 7/21/06-- This FReep at the gates of Walter Reed Army Medical Center started out calmly enough, very much like so many others since we, the DC Chapter of Free Republic, have have been coming there every Friday night since March, 2005 to counter anti-war agitators organized by Code Pink. Nothing seemed different except the wildly enthusiastic beeps of passing cars. In summertime's long daylight, with many car windows open, the enthusiasm of the drivers for our support-the-troops rally is much easier to express. Even two DC Metro police officers patrolling the area gave us the thumbs up as they drove up Georgia Avenue, and later, as they drove back down.
As a result of our keeping the pressure on, the Pinkos have bent over backwards to obscure their malevolence towards the Administration, the soldiers and the entire idea of defending this country, not just by having adopted hypocritical signs urging better care of the soldiers, but also by having now brought more American flags -- flags that are not desecrated like ones they have brought to Walter Reed in the past, or the one they recently protested with at the White House.
So, to help passing motorists tell them apart from us, the week before we started a helpful "Burma-Shave" campaign, and mounted it again this week:
Abruptly, one of the Pinkos decided that their feelings were hurt. Free speech is only for the hate-America crowd, not for those who honor the troops and support their mission! So one of the Pinkos performed a stupid human trick and started yanking the signs off the tops of the cars, tossing them over the fence onto Walter Reed's property. Kristinn wrote about it in an earlier thread.
We went up to the gates to see about retrieving our signs, but not so fast. It seems that the Pinkos' anger management issue had generated a call by the gate guards to the U.S. Department of the Army Police, two of whom strolled down to have a talk with the Pinkos:
A friend of the Pinkos arrived on the scene after the brouhaha. A DC lobbyist, he was also an acquaintance of Debbie Does DC. Returning to his car after bringing the Pinkos some sodas, he stopped to tell her that his friend in the Pink camp "felt really bad about it." I was standing with Debbie Does DC and remarked, "It looks like they got their feelings hurt." With a chuckle, she remarked how lucky it was that was all that got hurt.
...and the FReepers carried on as usual, waving to the troops that came and went, and waiting for the bus to return that brings troops and their families back from a night on the town. Pinkos do not wait for the bus, having been visibly disdained, back in the early days of their phony pro-troops vigil, by genuine troops on the bus. FReeper rlmorel hoisted the "THIS CORNER UNDER NEW NON-COMMIE MANAGEMENT" sign, but everything else settled back to normal. Carloads of people kept honking and high-signing us, including soldiers yelling out their car windows, "Thank you!" and "We love you!" to which we shouted back, "Thank YOU! We love YOU!"
An Army active-duty sergeant from California stood next to me for awhile as he waited for a taxi with another solider from Michigan and that soldier's father. The two looked so much alike I asked if they were brothers. "Yes, but from two different mothers," he said, meaning that his comrade-iin-arms was as close as a brother. Sergeant Bientema was from the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, and Spec. Litherland was from the 562 Engineers. Both had been recovering at Walter Reed. It took me a long while to notice that the sergeant had one prosthetic leg, since he was moving around so effortlessly.
"Thanks for being out here," said Sgt. Bientema. Regarding the anti-war protesters down the street, he continued, "They'll never get rid of us ground-pounders. You can't win a war without ground-pounders, whether for the fightin' or for the clean-up. Thank God for those that support us, and too bad for the ones that don't."
A young servicewoman who, with her mother and a group of other troops was also waiting for rides downtown, related that she is a medic and had been in Balad, Iraq, where there is a trauma hospital in the Iraqi combat zone. Battlefield injury patients are typically stabilized in the combat zone, then flown rapidly to longer-term care facilities such as Landstuhl, Germany or Walter Reed. This medic is now at Walter Reed for further training. "I like being here," she said, "because I get to see some of the patients I took care of in Balad. Now they are getting better."
FReepers present this week included Apple Blossom, Black Republican, bmwcyle, Cindy-True-Supporter, Debbie Does DC, Fraxinus, Gretchen15, Jack Deth, Jimmy Valentine's Brother, Just A Nobody, Kristinn, rlmorel, SenseiErn, tgslTakoma, 3D-Joy, Tom the Redhunter, [Mr & Mrs] Trooprally and myself. Lurkers included Bill from Maryland, Gavin, and his guest, Jeff.
Link to all the previous Walter Reed FReeps, courtesy of BufordP.
I 'spose I could do that!
What's this I hear about Diana Irey enlisting last night ! )
I have no idea.
The Hag sign stayed up and it is really pissing them off. The gloves are off and WAR!
DCChapter FReepers,
Please do not bait me anymore.
You all can protest your way, but the NC chapter rules will continue to include "No provocation or name-calling".
Please do not include me in any more "pinko hags" discussions.
Thx Bill, you guys are on the front lines. I hope to get the opportunity to be there.
Oh, whet my appetite, is it? LOL!
Mission accomplished! : )
That makes two of us!
Thanks so much for your report! It was great of you to drive all that way to join us and share in the experience that is unique to Walter Reed. It's fun to be surprised when you don't know who will show up from out of town, especially in the summer when vacations bring FReepers from all over the country. I still consider myself "new", but I can say that I have met some of the nicest people FReeping.
There's an old saying that I've heard, "You just haven't FReeped, 'til you FReeped with the DC Chapter!"
Thanks for coming to join us, we look forward to seeing you again soon.
Lazamataz said: All he'd have had to do is tell everyone that hot chicks with bodacious tatas were out there.
Shhh, Laz, I don't want to draw guys who are there to compete with me for all the gorgeous babes. :)
Appy, I was hoping that I put enough honey in there to disguise the vinegar. :)
Seriously though, I was away and didn't put any vinegar on these threads for weeks, but the honey put on the thread by others didn't draw a marked increase in FReepers attending. What enticements, what honey would you suggest that I offer? There's free pizza most time, free because several of us kick in the bucks to buy for the rest.
Although I always want more FReepers to attend, I'm incredibly proud that FReepers, Protest Warriors, and other allies have outnumbered the Pinkos at least about 50 of the 67 FReeps. When we started, I never thought that we would ever outdraw them in the liberal bastion of DC. We've rocked the Pinkos' world and have the anti-troop hate group completely flummoxed as their Walter Reed pysch-op fails miserably, leaving them in a total quagmire.
I've tried this tactic and that to motivate people to attend. The below is not intended to classify you, AppyPappy, or any other FReeper for that matter. People can classify themselves, but I just have to vent about this.
There are three types of FReepers and they know who they are.
There are "real world" FReepers (RWF) who say that something should be done about this outrage or that and then they personally will do something to counter it.
Then there are FReepers who say that somebody should do something about this outrage or that and they wish someone (else) would do some direct action. I'll call them "Some Else" FReepers (SEF).
SEF often offer greatly appreciated moral support and helpful suggestions, such as clever and funny sign ideas, to RWF. Some of SEF are great people contributing in all sorts of ways other than direct action. Some have medical, employment, family or distance from events making it impossible for them to become RWF.
A third and final group of FReepers, non-constructive FReepers (NCF), comment on an outrage or simply the RWF efforts with sarcastic, derogatory, petty, or other non-constructive criticisms of our signs, our recruiting efforts, our tactics, etc. Hell, one even told me online that the dedicated FReepers, standing in mid-day humid 90 plus degree heat in full sunshine to protest Hillary, were dressed too casually. (NCF does not include somebody who says something like the signs need larger letters or more contrast or other positive, possibly helpful, critiques.) The non-constructive comments often (usually?) are from people who never tried to organize or even attend a real world FReep. The non-constructive replies from these NCF non-doers aren't worth the paper that they are written on.
No, it doesn't flow from our conversation.
But I'm just sayin'.
See if I kicked the hornet's nest in my comments at 150.
Uunconstructive complaints to those who make things happen posted by those who don't are a waste of FR bandwidth.
Oversharing on that personal info, but I do hope that your luck turns better.
Yeah, I went on a tangent on you and Appy, nothing to do with you two, but I've been suppressing comments on some of this and there it is.
I'd add a fourth category. The DGAS FReepers.
I'm a HHSST Freeper.
(Haven't Had Sex Since Thursday)
your post #44 was absolutely awesome. Thank you.
Thank you, military and military families, for your courage and sacrifice in keeping America free. Thank you, FReepers, for protecting and supporting those who must spend time at WR.
God bless each and every one of you!!!!!
Bless you and thank you, Prov.
I can't afford anything but dial-up... and I was offline for a couple of months except for a few days here and there. Now I am paid up for a year as long as I can afford the darn phone and power =o)
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