[Proud] N.Y. Family Watched As Marine Hung Flag

Associated Press | Wednesday, April 9, 2003

[JohnHuang2]

N.Y. Family Watched As Marine Hung Flag

.c The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) - The world watched Wednesday as a Marine corporal clambered up a statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad and covered its face with an American flag just before the monument was pulled down and torn to pieces by cheering Iraqis.

Also looking on raptly was Cpl. Edward Chin's family in New York.

``I thought, 'Oh, my son, you are making history, you are part of the Iraqis' liberation,'' his father, Stanley Chin, said after watching the image of his son broadcast on television all over the world.

Shortly after wrapping the flag around the towering Saddam's face, military officials - highly conscious of anything that could be interpreted as a sign of American occupation - ordered Chin, 23, to take it down. He then replaced it with an Iraqi flag.

His fiancee, Anne Fu, said she knew Chin meant no disrespect.

``He wanted to show the Iraqi people that they were free, that they were liberated, that the U.S. was there to help them and that Saddam is over,'' she said outside the family's home.

Chin and his family are ethnic Chinese from Myanmar, formerly Burma. They moved to the United States when Chin was 1 week old and live in Brooklyn. He joined the Marines in 1999 and is stationed at the Marine Corps Air/Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, Calif.

His family said they had not seen him since before Christmas before they glimpsed him on television.

``I'm very proud of him,'' his sister Connie Chin told WWOR-TV. ``Here's a 23-year-old doing all these amazing things and representing America and representing it well, I think.''

[kimchi lover]

Old Glory BUMP

[VOA]

``I'm very proud of him,'' his sister Connie Chin told WWOR-TV. `
`Here's a 23-year-old doing all these amazing things and representing America
and representing it well, I think.''

Ms. Chin, you are a better reporter of momentous events than Connie CHUNG could
ever hope to be.

G-d Bless Marine Chin and all the Coalition and liberated Iraqis.

[nutmeg]

"I thought, 'Oh, my son, you are making history, you are part of the Iraqis' liberation," his father, Stanley Chin, said after watching the image of his son broadcast on television all over the world.

Wow, what a story... God bless Cpl. Edward Chin and all of our troops over there.

[nutmeg]

Thanks for the ping... you've got some impressive people there in the hood!

[JohnHuang2]

Neat :)

[JohnHuang2]

Marines Staff Sgt. Nick Popadich of Indianapolis, Ind., stood atop his tank in Baghdad. (New York Times pic and caption)

[nutmeg]

ping!

Please FReepmail me if you want on or off my infrequent ping list.

[JohnHuang2]

Iraqis celebrated as U.S. tanks rolled down Karada street in Baghdad. (New York Times pic and caption)

[JohnHuang2]

[arm958]

Bravo to Corporal Chin. I was disgusted to read a Fred Kaplan piece in Slate Magazine today in which he called Chin a moron for putting the flag on Saddam's head.

[Anomaly in Illinois]

What great photos!

[JohnHuang2]

Fred Kaplan ain't fit to tie Corporal Chin's shoes.

[Cold Heat]

Bump!

Nuff said!

[Coleus]

A relative of Vinny "the Chin" Giganti?

[dsutah]

It looks to me like the Iraqis are doing what some of the colonists did to that statue of King George at the beginning of the Revolution! It also looks like they're having a "Boston Tea Party" moment as well!

[Contra]

The flag sequence was magnificent, couldn't have been done better. First the American flag went up to let the world know who defeated Saddam (and who can defeat anyone else just as easily, if the need arises, hope you're watching Iran and North Korea). Then the Iraqi flag went up, which was a nice touch and popular with the crowd. The flags came down before the statue toppled so that they wouldn't be soiled on the ground. I don't know if this was spontaneous or planned but I thought it was brillantly done.

[tiki]

He's originally from another country that needs liberating.

[thedugal]

Where's the loony right crowd: "They only come here to get our money and go on welfare".. I hope they go and join the loony left in the all you can eat crow buffet.

[Newbomb Turk]

God bless Cpl. Edward Chin. As I watched him step out on the boom of that M88 I was fearful he might become an unintentional casulty. You know how it says on a ladder " Do not stand above this step ". This marine was balancing over 3 stories up and hoisting a very heavy piece of chain around Sadams neck.

Bravo to all US forces.

[SMEDLEYBUTLER]

Corporal Chin is a United States Marine, not a soldier.