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Iowa Marine may be candidate for Medal of Honor Associated Press Saturday, February 26, 2005, 2:59:02 PM DES MOINES -- An Iowa Marine is receiving widespread praise for his bravery after leading a daring rescue mission in Iraq last fall. Sgt. Brad Kasal, of Afton, said he learned three fellow Marines were wounded inside an enemy-controlled house during house-to-house battles with insurgents in Fallujah on Nov. 13. "The insurgents would kill them, or worse -- torture them and then kill them, so time was essential," Kasal said. "So I gathered up a bunch of young Marines and tried to enter...

During the Feb.2 State of the Union Address, President Bush acknowledged Pflugerville resident's William and Janet Norwood whose son, Marine Sergeant Byron Norwood, was killed in action last year in Fallujah, Iraq. The lost of Sgt. Norwood deeply touched members of the Pflugerville community and more than 1,000 friends and family of Sgt. Norwood attended services honoring him at the Pflugerville High School Fine Arts Center. Late last year a group of citizens began gathering support and searching for a way to memorialize Sgt. Norwood's sacrifice for his country. "Although our town is obviously appreciative and respectful of the sacrifices...

I am posting this because I was asked by several members if there was a scholarship in honor of the fallen Marine Byron Norwood. Well I got in contact with one of my old teachers and asked her if there was one. She told me that there wasn't one but she said that she would copy my email and send it to the head principal at Pflugerville High School. I think if everyone, who would like to donate to such a scholarship, emails Mr. Larry Bradley he might get the idea and start one. This is new for Pflugerville because...

President Bush's State of the Union address was crafted to address an array of challenges and boost administration strategies for dealing with them. That, after all, is what this affair - the political equivalent of the CEO's report to the stockholders - is all about. But for all the programs Bush outlined, all the initiatives he touted, the one moment indelibly etched on the consciousness of every viewer was a wordless one. It instantly became known as The Hug. It deeply touched even the flintiest of hearts among the assembled politicos, and reached everyday Americans with stunning impact. President Bush...

WASHINGTON - Two women provided the most touching moments during President Bush's State of the Union address Wednesday. They had so much, yet so little in common. Destiny -- and a bit of planning -- brought them together in a testament to America's fight against global terrorism. American Janet Norwood and Iraqi Safia Taleb al-Suhail were seated with the president's wife, Laura Bush, in the House chamber perched above the ground-floor level where the president was delivering his speech to Congress. Al-Suhail was next to the first lady; Norwood, with her husband, Bill, was directly behind al-Suhail. The president followed...

This is a poem being circulated amongst a group of Marine Moms. It was written by Janet Norwood. She is the woman who, along with her husband, attended the State of the Union Address to represent all families of our fallen heros. She and the Iraqi woman hugged during that very touching moment near the end of the speech. Admin, if this is a duplicate, please delete. I searched for it several ways and didn't find anything. For Byron I've heard the words oft times before - that "Freedom isn't Free". But that was long before I knew how they...

The news is full of the politics of Social Security. The hunt for terrorist master al-Zarqawi ratchets up. The UN oil-for-food scandal oozes mightily. All these are important, but I just can't get that hug out of my mind. It happened Wednesday night, I saw it on TV, and I still can't shake it. I'm stuck on it, seeing those two women hugging during President Bush's State of the Union speech, their bodies close, souls weary, the Marine mom and the Iraqi woman, speaking to each other through touch, their hearts breaking and American hearts breaking with them. Some scribes...

The mother of a Marine who died liberating Iraq and who provided the emotional high point of Wednesday night's State of the Union Address when she hugged a grateful Iraqi voter sitting in the gallery, denied Thursday morning that the unforgettable episode had been staged, as several left-leaning commentators have alleged. Appearing with her husband Bill on ABC's "Good Morning America," Janet Norwood, mother of Sgt. Byron Norwood, was asked whether the embrace was pre-planned by host Diane Sawyer. The exchange went like this: SAWYER: It was such a moving moment for everyone, including clearly the president, in the room...