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A former medic with the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) that heroically fought his way up a mountain to render aid to his Special Forces teammates and their Afghan commando counterparts will receive the Medal of Honor. The White House announced today that former Staff Sgt. Ronald J. Shurer II went above and beyond the call of duty April 6, 2008, while assigned to Special Operations Task Force -- 33 in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom. He will receive the highest military award for valor at a White House ceremony… Shurer helped keep the large insurgent force at bay while...

It is quite possible that Colin Kaepernick was kneeling during the National Anthem the first time because his life as an NFL football player was such a MESS. He may have been kneeling at that game since he was thinking about how MISERABLE HIS PERFORMANCE WAS AT QB AND HE MIGHT BE FIRED AT THE END OF THE 2016 SEASON (which he was)!!! In 2015, his QB rating was 78+, which is terrible for an NFL QB. In 2016, it was slightly higher, but he was hurting the SF 49'ers, not helping them. So the word LOSER should be equated...

President Trump should award John McCain, who died on Saturday, the Medal of Honor. The posthumous award would recognize the senator’s extraordinary heroism during his five years of captivity in North Vietnam, when he was tortured mercilessly, leaving him disabled for life. The compassionate and respectful gesture might also help to heal some deep wounds in the Republican Party. McCain was a Navy fighter pilot when his plane was shot down on a mission over the North Vietnamese capital of Hanoi in 1967. He fractured both arms and one leg when he was ejected from his jet and nearly drowned...

President Trump posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor to Air Force Sgt. John Chapman, who gave his life to save more than 20 fellow service members on a mountain in Afghanistan in 2002. Trump presented the award to Chapman’s family Wednesday. Chapman was the first airman to receive the award since the Vietnam War, officials said. The sergeant was a native of Windsor Locks, Conn., and the father of two young girls. Trump said at the ceremony that Chapman, from an early age — his life was about: “to protect those in need.” The president said it began early when...

G.I. Joe was just a toy, wasn't he? VIN SUPRYNOWICZ Hollywood now proposes that in a new live-action movie based on the G.I. Joe toy line, Joe's -- well, "G.I." -- identity needs to be replaced by membership in an "international force based in Brussels." The IGN Entertainment news site reports Paramount is considering replacing our "real American hero" with "Action Man," member of an "international operations team." Paramount will simply turn Joe's name into an acronym. The show biz newspaper Variety reports: "G.I. Joe is now a Brussels-based outfit that stands for Global Integrated Joint Operating Entity, an international...

On this day in 1942, the U.S. 1st Marine Division begins Operation Watchtower, the first U.S. offensive of the war, by landing on Guadalcanal, one of the Solomon Islands. On July 6, 1942, the Japanese landed on Guadalcanal Island and began constructing an airfield there. Operation Watchtower was the codename for the U.S. plan to invade Guadalcanal and the surrounding islands. During the attack, American troops landed on five islands within the Solomon chain. Although the invasion came as a complete surprise to the Japanese (bad weather had grounded their scouting aircraft), the landings on Florida, Tulagi, Gavutu, and Tananbogo...

This Day In History | World War II August 7 1942 U.S. forces invade Guadalcanal On this day in 1942, the U.S. 1st Marine Division begins Operation Watchtower, the first U.S. offensive of the war, by landing on Guadalcanal, one of the Solomon Islands. On July 6, 1942, the Japanese landed on Guadalcanal Island and began constructing an airfield there. Operation Watchtower was the codename for the U.S. plan to invade Guadalcanal and the surrounding islands. During the attack, American troops landed on five islands within the Solomon chain. Although the invasion came as a complete surprise to the Japanese...

, Calif.(Nov. 23, 2003) -- A quiet chill settled over the Riverside National Cemetery. Six Marines gripped the polished metal rails of a casket. They moved in unison, carrying the flag-draped coffin for one final honor for a Marine hero. Col. Mitchell Paige, recipient of the Medal of Honor, was laid to rest near the Medal of Honor Memorial here Sunday. Hundreds of mourners turned out to watch as an honor guard and honor platoon from 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment based at Marine Corps Air-Ground Center Twentynine Palms, the 1st Marine Division Band and Lt. Gen. James T. Conway,...

I probably blew the format for starting a thread...and didn't see posted elsewhere. A true hero has moved on. My 56 year old self just went outside, faced the sky, and offered the best salute I've snapped in 35 years. Rest In Peace, Mitch....proud and honored to have had your aquaintance.

Autumn,1942: It came down to one Marine, and one ship. October 26 falls on a Thursday this year. Ask the significance of the date, and you're likely to draw some puzzled looks -- five more days to stock up for Halloween? It's a measure of men like Col. Mitchell Paige and Rear Adm. Willis A. "Ching Chong China" Lee that they wouldn't have had it any other way. What they did 58 years ago, they did precisely so their grandchildren could live in a land of peace and plenty. Whether we've properly safeguarded the freedoms they fought to leave us,...

Of all the memorable dates of World War II, this one somehow got lost in the jungle. Remember Aug. 7, 1942? Quiz your friends. Note the silence. To veterans who landed 60 years ago today on the Pacific island of Guadalcanal, it is a silence almost as eerie and inexplicable as the quiet of the early hours of their raid -- the first U.S. offensive of the war. "So many people today don't even know what Guadalcanal is," said Rudy Bock, 82, of Overland Park, who stormed in with fellow Marines and caught the Japanese with their guns down. "You...

The Real Deal: While idiot NFL players were busy kneeling and protesting America during Thursday night’s official preseason launch, the family of an Air Force hero was grieving his loss. The Air Force released stunning video of Tech Sgt. John Chapman’s final stand in Afghanistan, where he died recently in the heat of battle. [Air Force-released video accompanies story]

In the newly released 1.5-minute Air Force video, a figure identified as Chapman can be seen charging up a steep slope toward enemy positions atop the 10,000-foot peak... Chapman and SEAL team leader Britt Slabinski teamed up to attack enemy positions. After assaulting the first of two positions, identified as bunkers in the footage, Chapman abandons cover to attack a second position where an enemy machine gun was firing on his team, when he is wounded.

WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- President Donald Trump will posthumously award the Medal of Honor to the family of a fallen U.S. Air Force Special Tactics Combat Controller at a ceremony on Aug. 22 for his extraordinary heroism in March 2002 while deployed to Afghanistan. According to the medal nomination, Tech. Sergeant John Chapman distinguished himself on the battlefield through “conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity,” sacrificing his life to preserve those of his teammates. Chapman was part of a joint special operations reconnaissance team deployed to Afghanistan in 2002 that came under overwhelming enemy fire during a heroic rescue attempt on Takur Ghar...

A Marine credited with saving the lives of countless members of his company during one of the bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War will receive the Medal of Honor, thanks to the efforts of a congresswoman and a group of Marines who witnessed his heroics. Retired Sgt. Maj. John Canley, who lives in the coastal community of Oxnard, Calif., learned he will receive the nation’s highest military honor via a phone call from President Donald Trump early this month. An official announcement from the White House is expected once a date for the presentation is confirmed. Canley initially received the...

Fifty years after the Battle of Hue, one of the bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War, a Marine is being recognized for his brave actions. Retired Sgt. Maj. John Canley received a phone call from President Donald Trump earlier this month in his home in Oxnard, California. Trump told Canley that he was receiving the Medal of Honor for his work in early 1968. The White House will be making an official announcement once the date for presenting the award is confirmed. Canley has previously received the Navy Cross, two Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart for his heroism. In...

President Donald Trump has awarded the Medal of Honor to a Navy SEAL who oversaw a daring assault and rescue mission on a snowy Afghanistan mountaintop in 2002. Trump presented the nation's most prestigious honor for battlefield bravery to Master Chief Special Warfare Operator Britt K. Slabinski at the White House Thursday. Trump says Slabinski is a "special man" and a "truly brave person." The White House says Slabinski repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire from more heavily armed al-Qaida forces during the March 2002 assault. Slabinski later carried a seriously wounded teammate down a sheer cliff face while leading...

Pope combat controller awarded Air Force Crossby Airman 1st Class Jason A. Neal43rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs01/13/03 - POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. (AFPN) -- Senior Air Force leaders awarded the Air Force Cross to Tech. Sgt. John Chapman here Jan. 10. RELATED LINKS Printable Version Chapman, a combat controller killed in Afghanistan while saving the lives of his entire team, was posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross, which is second only to the Medal of Honor as an award for valor. Secretary of the Air Force James G. Roche said Chapman was "an American's American" and a hero....

John Chapman among 7 killed in Afghanistan trying to rescue comrade Wednesday, March 13, 2002 By Tom Gibb, Post-Gazette Staff Writer WINDBER, Pa. -- He was born in Connecticut; he wasn't a hometown boy. Truth is, most of the 4,600 people around this northern Somerset County town didn't even know Air Force Tech. Sgt. John Chapman. As Air Force Tech Sgt. John Chapman's casket is lowered into the ground in Windber, Somerset County, one of his team members is consoled; another stands at attention. Chapman was one of seven soldiers who died in the mountains of east Afghanistan when they...

WASHINGTON, May 24, 2002 – The battle on an Afghan mountaintop called Takur Ghar is a story of American courage and bravery. It is a story of a small band of highly trained professionals overcoming the fog and friction of war. It is also at heart, a story of Americans service members' unwillingness to leave one of their own behind. The battle featured special operations forces from all three services. Navy SEALs, Army Rangers and pilots and Air Force combat controllers and pararescuemen fought against entrenched al Qaeda fighters atop a 10,000-foot mountain. According to an executive summary of the...