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Now, that you’re gone Joe, I just wanted to say thanks for everything you’ve done for the country. You’ve been around a long time, all the way back to 1775. You waged a lot of battles, fought plenty of bad guys and helped bring down evil empires. You crossed the Delaware with Washington, fought the Bloody British in a town named New Orleans, trudged endlessly through the steaming jungles of the South Pacific, climbed Pointe du Hoc to save the world, slugged it out with Victor Charlie in razor sharp elephant grass; battled sandstorms and Jihadis from Medina Ridge to...

The official music video for Aaron Watsons hit song, "July In Cheyenne off his album 'Vaquero'.Aaron Watson‪ - ‬July In Cheyenne (Official Music Video)‬ | December 4, 2013 | Aaron Watson |

Oct. 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, may be a discussion best left for another day. Today...

“My parents and teachers instilled in me a devout love of God, family, and country. When I left home after high school to enlist in the Marines, my God-fearing mother admonished me to ‘Just trust in God always.’ Six years later, right after the fierce battle on Guadalcanal, I emptied the contents of my combat pack, and be-cause of my burned hands, I gingerly picked up my pocket New Testament which included the Psalms and Proverbs. The page prov-identially opened to Proverbs 3:5-6: ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all...

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...

It's hard to envision -- or, for the dwindling few, to remember -- what the world looked like on Oct. 26, 1942, when a few thousand U.S. Marines stood essentially stranded on the God-forsaken jungle island of Guadalcanal, placed like a speed bump at the end of the long blue-water slot between New Guinea and the Bismarck Archipelago, the most likely route for the Japanese Navy to take if they hoped to reach Australia. On Guadalcanal, the Marines struggled to complete an airfield. Japanese Adm. Isoroku Yamamoto knew what that meant. No effort would be spared to dislodge these upstart...

<p>On March 24, former West Mifflin resident and McKeesport High School graduate Mitchell Paige will join 208 other worthy recipients in a ceremony in Florida to receive the rank of Eagle Scout from the Boy Scouts of America.</p> <p>While that in itself is a distinguished honor, the fact that Paige is an 83-year-old war hero and Medal of Honor recipient makes it a one-of-a-kind event.</p>