THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS (161st Anniversary 2024)

November 19, 2024 marks the 161st anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Ever since Lincoln wrote it in 1863, this version has been the most often reproduced, notably on the walls of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. It is named after Colonel Alexander Bliss, stepson of historian George Bancroft. Bancroft asked President Lincoln for a copy to use as a fundraiser for soldiers (see “Bancroft Copy” below). However, because Lincoln wrote on both sides of the paper, the speech could not be reprinted, so Lincoln made another copy at Bliss’s request. It is the last known copy written by Lincoln and the only one signed and dated by him. Today, it is on display in the Lincoln Room of the White House in Washington D.C..

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate — we can not consecrate — we can not hallow — this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

~Abraham Lincoln November 19, 1863

Photo of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and Feather Quill

Gettysburg, PA November 19, 1863

On October 12th 2000 the USS Cole was attacked

This Day in History-Oct 12, 2000

A US Navy destroyer, the USS Cole, refueling in Yemen suffered an enormous explosion in a terrorist attack. Initial reports had at least 6 sailors killed with 11 missing. The death toll was revised to 17. The 8,600-ton Cole was returned to the US aboard the Norwegian ship Blue Marlin. In 2001 a video tape by “Al-Sahab Productions” circulated among Muslim militants with footage of the bombed vessel.

The Cole returned to active duty in 2003 following $250 million in repairs.

Those killed: Hull Maintenance Technician 2nd Class Kenneth Clodfelter, Electronics Technician Chief Petty Officer Richard Costelow, Mess Management Specialist Seaman Lakeina Francis, Information Systems Technician Seaman Timothy Lee Gauna, Signalman Seaman Cherone Louis Gunn, Seaman James Rodrick McDaniels, Engineman 2nd Class Marc Ian Nieto, Electronics Warfare Technician 2nd Class Ronald Owens, Seaman Lakiba Nicole Palmer, Engineman Fireman Joshua Langdon Parlett, Fireman Patrick Howard Roy, Electronics Warfare Technician 1st Class Kevin Shawn Rux, Mess Management Specialist 3rd Class Ronchester Santiago, Operations Specialist 2nd Class Timothy Lamont Saunders, Fireman Gary Graham Swenchonis Jr., Ensign Andrew Triplett, Seaman Craig Bryan Wibberley.

MILITARY TRADITION UNDER ATTACK ~ AGAIN!

Obama Bans Military From Making Church Donations ~ Are you kidding me? President Obama has banned members of the US Military from making donations to churches.  Obama is trying to “suppress” religious freedom so that his “radical social policy” may be advanced.  Military people have been told,  “If you are supporting an evangelical Christian organization, then you are committing a crime and are subject to Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).” ~ Thanks Obama!

Religion in the Military ~ In a stunning attack on the speech rights and free religious exercise of U.S. soldiers, the Obama administration released a statement confirming the unthinkable: “Any soldier who professes Christianity can now be court-martialed and may face imprisonment and a dishonorable discharge from the military … even if they are a military chaplain”. ~ Thanks Obama!

The VA Strikes Again! ~ The Veteran’s Administration has Banned the Word, GOD from Services at Military Cemetaries.  The words, “God” and “Jesus” are forbidden and that “God Bless” should no longer be written in condolence cards to families. Volunteers are also banned from speaking a religious message when talking directly to veterans’ families on cemetery grounds. To add insult to injury ~ last December, the Obama administration’s Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) prohibited veterans under treatment in VA Medical Centers from hearing Christmas carols by banning Christmas carolers from singing Christmas songs with religious references in public areas. BO even had the nerve to ban those veterans from receiving any  gifts wrapped in Christmas-themed wrapping paper. (What a creep!) Thanks Obama!!!

 

Obama’s Military: No Navy Jack, No Traditions, No God (As a Navy Veteran, this one really pisses me off! ~ dfh) ~ The Navy Jack – the ‘don’t tread on me’ flag – has been banned from use on Navy SEALS uniforms. The patch on Navy uniforms has been ordered removed.  The Navy Jack was the first flag of the Continental Navy during the war of independence and it has been in use through the centuries, including the current war on terror. This is a symbol of our heritage and it is being erased with one memo by someone in our administration. It’s probably not Mr. Obama because he doesn’t know anything.

An amendment to the Navy code called SECNAV Instruction 10520.6 clearly states that as of 31 May 2002 all ships are to fly the flag throughout the duration of the War on Terror. No longer. The Navy brass has ordered the symbol removed from all SEALs’ uniforms. Why would they do something like this? The obvious reason is because it is very similar to the revolutionary flag that has become the symbol of the Tea Party. ~ Thanks Obama!

TATTOOS (Portions excerpted from the NY Times article dated  April 30, 2014)

The military tattoo has a deep history, with reports going back at least to the Roman legions, historians say. Images of adventure or battle — if not a haunting beauty from the frontiers of Gaul — could be captured forever on a bicep. Declarations of unit loyalty or individuality, or both, could be sealed through rituals of ink and pain. But now a tightening of the Army’s regulations on the wear and appearance of uniforms and insignia — issued on March 31 with a 30-day window of unit-by-unit enforcement — had driven a land rush to tattoo shops around the country to get “tatted,” as soldiers call it, while the old rules still applied.

The new rules restrict total inkage on arms and legs visible on a soldier wearing short sleeves and short pants. They also limit the size of each visible tattoo to no bigger than the wearer’s open hand. But the Army is also generally allowing soldiers to keep the tattoos they had before the effective date of the new rules, as long as they do not violate prohibitions on things like obscenity, racism or extremism, and are documented with a photograph before the deadline.

Hence the rush to get inked. With some superior officers, many of them tattooed as well, giving ample warning as to when those photographs would be taken, soldiers said they have experienced a unique window of opportunity — but also, perhaps, a nudge — to get that next tattoo, or a lot of them.

Military regulation of tattoos, or at least the attempt, is not new. Shortly before World War I, military authorities tried to reign in wayward ink with a prohibition on “indecent or obscene” tattoos — mostly naked women in those days — but allowed existing depictions to be altered to meet the new rule, which led to many a discreet grass skirt as cover-up.

The Navy updated its tattoo policies again in 2003, and again in 2006, and with a further update in 2010 — nodding to the modern military of men and women serving together — that tweaks the rules on so-called permanent makeup tattoos, allowed for eyebrows, eyeliner, lipstick and lip liner. “Permanent makeup shall be in good taste,” the Navy’s regulations say.

The Marines tightened their personal grooming and appearance regulations in 2010, the Air Force in 2012. All four main military branches prohibit tattoos around the neck. No person with what is called a sleeve — or fully tattooed arm — can become a Marine.

AMERICANS UNITED

Obama is the shepherd I did not want, He leadeth me beside the still factories, He restoreth my faith in the Republican party, He guideth me in the path of unemployment for his party’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the bread line, I shall fear no hunger, for his bailouts are with me. He has anointed my income with taxes, My expenses runneth over. Surely, poverty and hard living will follow me all the days of my life, And I will live in a mortgaged home forever.

OBAMA AND HITLER (TWO PEAS IN A POD)

In March, 2014 I published an article here entitled, “Why is Barack Obama Like King George III of England“? The comparison of the two was so interesting to me that I began making comparisons between Barrack Hussein Obama & Adolf Hitler. Hitler’s “T-4 Program” is another comparison that I attribute to OBAMACARE and that I published that opinion because I believe the Obama Administration and NOW the Veteran’s Administration are now finally in sync to murder Americans whom the Federal Government believes are too old, too conservative, too patriotic, pro-American ~ thus inconvenient to the radical, socialist agenda of liberal people who have either been indoctrinated, into socialistic policies that reward the politicians in power & do NOTHING for the working class in general. *******

COMPARE OBAMA TO HITLER © by Dorian F. Howard 2014

The similarities are terrifying, the conclusion inevitable. On March 23, 1933, the German Parliament met to consider passing a bill that Adolf Hitler had created called the Enabling Act. It was officially called the ‘Law for Removing the Distress of the People and the Reich.’ Why were the German people in such distress? Because their government was in utter chaos, and the German leaders wanted to reassure the people that everything would be okay. The only fly in the ointment was that the Nazis had, behind the scenes, caused the distress themselves by creating the crisis, so that they could step in and solve it. Sound familiar?

Hitler promised the German people that the government would “make use of these powers only insofar as they are essential for carrying out vitally necessary measures. The number of cases in which an internal necessity exists for having recourse to such a law is in itself a limited one.” So the German congress voted on the bill, with the end result being the legal destruction of the German Democratic Republic. The bill gave Hitler enormous, unprecedented powers to do as he saw fit for the government of the German people. It was the act that officially created a legal dictator who was answerable to no one. The people cheered, and National Socialism became the law of the land from that day forward. Today, Barack Obama is changing times and laws in America, giving himself unprecedented power never before seen. His Obama Care bill, now the law of the land; empowers him to create his ownprivate army, forces citizens to abide by unconstitutional laws, and will use the IRS in much the same way that Hitler used his brown shirts * eventually the SS to make people get in line behind his policies. Many Americans will awaken from their “Obama Dreamy-Eyed Coma” too late to the fact that Obama has subverted the United States Constitution, and stolen our precious liberties and freedoms. That’s why Obama’s followers are encouraged and taught to follow and have faith in Obama the man, and not in our God or in our country. This is exactly the ploy that Hitler used to great and terrible effect in Nazi Germany.

Some people would balk at the comparison between Hitler and Obama, saying it was unfair. After all, Hitler started WWII and killed 11,000,000 Jews and Gentiles in death camps, and Obama has done nothing like that. Well, it’s only unfair if you compare Hitler at the end of his rule to the beginning of Obama’s. But if you compare Hitler and Obama at the beginning of their rise to power, it’s extremely fair. Both Hitler & Obama held rallies in outdoor stadiums to excite and inflame people’s passions. Frequently, women would faint or break into tears. If that’s not enough, check out the following:

Both Hitler and Obama wrote ghost-written autobiographies prior to the start of their run for political office. Hitler wrote ‘Mein Kampf’ (My Struggle), and Obama wrote ‘Dreams Of My Father’. (Some doubt exists that Obama actually wrote his so-called autobiography believing instead that it may have been ghost-written byWilliam (Bill) Charles Ayers, a former leader of the terrorist Weather Underground. A friend of Obama’s before he ran for POTUS.) Both Obama & Hitler then wrote a second book talking about their goals for German and America. Hitler wrote “A New World Order”, Obama wrote “The Audacity of Hope”.
Both Hitler and Obama originally had last names that were changed later in life. Hitler used to be Schickelbruber, and Obama’s last name was Soetoro.
Both Hitler and Obama hid their real identities. Hitler had a Jewish ancestry, and Obama Muslim one. But unlike Hitler, Obama flaunted his Muslim roots in his start as a politician in order to defuse the inevitable firestorm. His ploy of “hiding in plain sight” worked very well.
Both Hitler and Obama’s supporters followed them blindly, and without question.
Both Hitler and Obama used political power and coercion to conceal and hide their birth certificates from coming to public view. Hitler made his disappear, and Obama is unwilling and unable to produce his REAL long-form birth certificate.
Both Hitler and Obama advocate using young people as a driving force to create an “army” of youth dedicated to their Ideals. Hitler had his Hitler Youth, and Obama his Obama Youth Brigade.
Both Hitler and Obama were known for their tremendous oratorical skills. Albeit~ Obama uses a teleprompter.
Both Hitler and Obama received Messianic comparisons, and both men had songs of adoration written about them and for them.
Like Hitler, Obama rules in direct disregard to the will and wishes of the people. The American People mean nothing to Obama!
Like Hitler, Obama has an obvious distaste for the Jews, and sides with the Muslims every chance he gets. Thus~ he ignores crimes against Christians & Jews all over the world!
Both Hitler and Obama were able to mesmerize the people even when it was obvious that what they were saying was not true.
Both Hitler and Obama used domestic terrorists to launch their careers. Hitler had his Brown Shirts from his beer hall days, and Obama had people like Bill Ayers, Bernardine Dohrn, and Rashid Khalidi.
Like Hitler, Obama advocates using murder as a means of population control.

GAYS SERVING OPENLY IN THE MILITARY

CAN GAYS SERVING OPENLY IN THE ARMED FORCES HURT READINESS, LOWER MORALE & CAUSE TENSION AMONG TROOPS ~PERHAPS LEADING TO MORE CASUALITIES? (This Jersey Girl and Navy Veteran has an opinion which is all her own ~ at the bottom of this page. Love it or hate it, it is MY opinion as an AMERICAN, US NAVY VETERAN & my First Amendment right of Free Speech guaranteed under the US Constitution. To that end~ I welcome all opinions & promise to read them all, however; I will only respond to Veterans & current active duty Military Service personnel who actually are the only ones qualified and entitled to render their opinions on this particular matter! ~ JGT)

When I joined the military in 1979, it was illegal to serve if you were a homosexual, then came  “Don’t ask, Don’t tell” (1993-2011) when it was okay to serve as long as you didn’t tell anyone about it~ and now, (since 2011) it’s legal. Throughout its history, the US Military has had an inconsistent policy when it came to homosexuals in the military.  Here’s a brief history lesson courtesy of About.com. ~ JGT

Prior to World War II, there was no written policy barring homosexuals from serving, although sodomy was considered a crime by military law under the UCMJ (Uniform Code of Military Justice) ever since Revolutionary War times. In 1778, Lieutenant Gotthold Frederick Enslin became the first soldier to be drummed out of the Continental Army for sodomy. During World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, the military defined homosexuality as a mental defect, and officially barred homosexuals from serving based on medical criteria. However, when personnel needs increased due to combat, the military developed a habit of relaxing its screening criteria. Many homosexual men and women serviced honorably during these conflicts. Unfortunately, these periods were short-lived. As soon as the need for combat personnel decreased, the military would involuntarily discharge them. It wasn’t until 1982 that the Department of Defense officially put in writing that “homosexuality was incompatible with military service,” when they published a DOD directive stating such. According to a 1992 report by the Government Accounting Office, nearly 17,000 men and women were discharged under this new directive during the 1980s. By the end of that decade, reversing the military’s policy was emerging as a priority for advocates of gay and lesbian civil rights. Several lesbian and gay male members of the military came out publicly and vigorously challenged their discharges through the legal system.

By the beginning of 1993, it appeared that the military’s ban on gay personnel would soon be overturned.  President Clinton announced that he intended to keep his campaign promise by eliminating military discrimination based on sexual orientation.  But, this didn’t sit well with the Republican-controlled Congress. Congressional leaders threatened to pass legislation that would bar homosexuals from serving, if Clinton issued an executive order changing the policy.  After lengthy public debate and congressional hearings, the President and Senator Sam Nunn, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, reached a compromise which they labeled Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pursue. Under its terms, military personnel would not be asked about their sexual orientation and would not be discharged simply for being gay. However having sexual relations, or displaying romantic overtures with members of the same sex, or telling anyone about their sexual orientation is considered “homosexual conduct” under the policy and is a basis for involuntary discharge. This is now known as the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law, and is the current Department of Defense Policy. (Proponents of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell repeatedly claimed that open service would undermine the unit cohesion and readiness of the U.S. military. DADT was Repealed September 20, 2011~ JGT)

As a 12 year veteran of the U.S. Navy and wife of a retired veteran, I can only sympathize with the current environment of the active duty soldier & sailor dilemma regarding homosexuals serving in the military. I was personally propositioned several times while living in the barracks at US Naval Air Station, Bermuda in the early 1980’s. After sharing open showers & other personal spaces with my friends & dozens of my other Navy female peers~ I was disgusted by those propositions, ALL of which came from young women I had trusted & believed to be heterosexual. I never reported the offenses even though at the time, homosexuals were being discharged from the military. I have had many friendships with both male & female homosexuals though the years including a few family members. I have no problem with their chosen lifestyle as long as it’s not thrown in my face or I am made to silence my own Christian Religious beliefs on the matter. However; in MY opinion~ outwardly & obviously gay individuals serving in the military disrupt the absolute necessity for bonding & comradely of ALL troops most ESPECIALLY when serving in any hostile environment or combat zone. ~ JGT

“Old Glory” & the History of “Flag Day” in America

Did you know that the week of June 12–18, 2024 is designated as National Flag Week. “Old Glory” or rather, the American “Stars and Stripes” which originated as a result of a resolution adopted by the Marine Committee of the Second Continental Congress at Philadelphia on June 14, 1777. The resolution read: “Resolved, that the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field representing a new constellation.”

The resolution gave no instruction as to how many points the stars should have, or how the stars should be arranged on the blue union. Consequently, some flags had stars scattered on the blue field without any specific design, some arranged the stars in rows, and some in a circle. The first Navy Stars and Stripes had the stars arranged in staggered formation in alternate rows of threes and twos on a blue field. Other Stars and Stripes flags had stars arranged in alternate rows of four, five and four. Some stars had six points while others had eight.

Strong evidence indicates that Francis Hopkinson of New Jersey, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, was responsible for the stars in the U.S. flag. At the time that the flag resolution was adopted, Hopkinson was the Chairman of the Continental Navy Board’s Middle Department. Hopkinson also helped design other devices for the Government including the Great Seal of the United States. For his services, Hopkinson submitted a letter to the Continental Admiralty Board asking “whether a Quarter Cask of the public Wine will not be a proper & reasonable Reward for these Labours of Fancy and a suitable Encouragement to future Exertions of a like Nature.” His request was subsequently turned down since the Congress regarded him as a public servant.

According to legend, in 1776, George Washington commissioned Philadelphia seamstress Betsy Ross to create a flag for the new nation. Scholars debate this legend, but agree that Mrs. Ross most likely knew Washington and sewed flags. To date, there have been twenty-seven official versions of the flag, but the arrangement of the stars varied according to the flag-makers’ preferences until 1912 when President Taft standardized the then-new flag’s forty-eight stars into six rows of eight. The forty-nine-star flag (1959-60), as well as the fifty-star flag, also have standardized star patterns. The current version of the flag dates to July 4, 1960, after Hawaii became the fiftieth state on August 21, 1959.

The first celebration of the U.S. Flag’s birthday was held in 1877 on the 100th anniversary of the Flag Resolution of 1777. However, it is believed that the first annual recognition of the flag’s birthday dates back to 1885 when school teacher, BJ Cigrand, first organized a group of Wisconsin school children to observe June 14 – the 108th anniversary of the official adoption of The Stars and Stripes as the Flag’s Birthday. Cigrand, now known as the ‘Father of Flag Day,’ continued to publically advocate the observance of June 14 as the flag’s ‘birthday’, or ‘Flag Day’ for years.

In 1916, the anniversary of the Flag Resolution of 1777 became a nationally observed event by a proclamation by President Woodrow Wilson thus establishing a national Flag Day on June 14 each year. Americans have commemorated the adoption of the Stars and Stripes by celebrating June 14 as Flag Day. Prior to 1916, many localities and a few states had been celebrating the day for years. Congressional legislation had already designated that date as the national Flag Day and it was signed into law by President Harry Truman in 1949; the legislation also called upon the president to issue a Flag Day proclamation every year. However, it was not designated as National Flag Day until August 3rd, 1949, when an Act of Congress designated June 14th of each year as National Flag Day.

Though Flag Day is neither a federal holiday nor one can declare it as an official leave the state of Pennsylvannia was the first and foremost state in the U.S. who declared & celebrated Flag Day as a state holiday on June 14th 1937.

Today, Flag Day is celebrated throughout the country with parades, essay contests, ceremonies, and picnics sponsored by veterans’ groups, schools, and groups like the National Flag Day foundation whose goal is to preserve the traditions, history, pride, and respect that are due the nation’s symbol, Old Glory.

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D-DAY JUNE 6th, 1944 (OPERATION OVERLORD and NEPTUNE)

This year, June 6, 2024~ marks the 80th Anniversary of the Normandy Invasion. WWII’s D-Day.

Operation Overlord 1944 Joint Forces Pic

Immediately after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor the Allies created the “Combined Chiefs of Staff” (CCS) comprising of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff and the British Chiefs of Staff. Their function was to assist and advise U.S. President Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Churchill on the direction and conduct of the war. The CCS confirmed a previous policy of “Germany First” and, from March 1942, their planning group began work on an outline plan for a full-scale invasion of Europe. They initially hoped to invade Europe in 1943 but the realities of insufficient materials and manpower, and the demands of other operations agreed upon, delayed this effort until 1944 – this despite persistent agitation from Russian Dictator, Stalin to open a second front to relieve pressure in the East.

When America joined the war on the side of Britain in 1941, the two made plans to retake France from the Germans. The situation looked bleak. Britain was running out of food, Western Europe was under the Nazi heel, and the Soviet Union was near collapse. The Russians were begging for an immediate second front to stop the Germans. It was clear that an U.S. invasion of Germany itself was necessary to overthrow Hitler.

Operation Overlord, also known as the Normandy Invasion or simply D-Day, was the code name for the Allied invasion of northern Europe in World War II. It began with the landings on the beaches of Normandy in northwestern France on June 6, 1944, and accomplished the largest amphibious invasion in the history of mankind, using 200,000 men, 9,000 planes, and over 5,000 ships.

Operation Neptune was the name given to the Naval Armada of allied ships & the allied Air Corps involved. On the

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whole, the naval fleet was composed of five forces, one for each beach. (Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno & Sword) Utah & Omaha beaches were invaded by American Forces. The other three by British, Canadian & a free French Battalion. Eight to sixteen distinct convoys composed the five principal convoys. These forces represented more than 5300 ships of all types plus the 4000 relay boats between the shore and the ships. During the landing, 3460 heavy bombers and 1650 light bombers dropped hundreds of tons of bombs on the Normandy coast, targeting the batteries and the fortifications of the German’s Atlantic Wall. The 82nd and 101st American airborne divisions had been parachuted in hours preceding the amphibian offensive, in the western sector of the allied invasion, West and South-west of Utah Beach, located in the Cotentin peninsula. Once on the ground, the Americans of the 82nd and 101st got under way immediately towards their objectives. Despite an extremely high number of losses (50% in the only night of June 6, 1944), the American parachutists of the 82nd and 101st Airborne achieved a great number of their missions.

Years in the planning~ the Battle of Normandy was fought during World War II in the summer of 1944, between the Allied nations and German forces occupying Western Europe. Seventy years later, the Normandy Invasion, or D-Day, remains

dday_map

the largest seaborne invasion in history, involving nearly three million troops crossing the English Channel from England to Normandy in occupied France. Twelve Allied nations provided fighting units that participated in the invasion, including Australia, Canada, Belgium, France, Czechoslovakia, Greece, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The American, British, and Canadian troops were under the command of U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower, and crossed the English Channel on June 6, 1944, landing on six beaches along sixty miles of the Normandy coast. Their intention was to drive German forces east and out of France while Russian forces in Eastern Europe slowly pushed west. The heaviest fighting occurred at Omaha Beach, where perhaps as many as 3,000 American men were killed or wounded. By contrast, fewer than 200 casualties (out of 23,000 soldiers engaged) were suffered at Utah, the next beach over.

Operation Overlord was the codename for the Allied invasion of northwest Europe. The assault phase, or the establishment of a secure foothold, was known as Operation Neptune. Operation Neptune began on D-Day (June 6, 1944) and ended on June 30, when the Allies had finally established a firm foothold in Normandy. Operation Overlord continued until Allied forces crossed the River Seine on August 19, 1944.

The battle began months before the invasion, when Allied bombers began to pound the Normandy coast and farther south, to destroy transportation links, and disrupt the German army’s build-up of their military strength. More than 300 planes dropped 13,000 bombs over Normandy in advance of the invasion. Six parachute regiments, with more than 13,000 men, also went ahead to cut railroad lines, blow up bridges, and seize landing fields. Gliders also brought in men, light artillery, jeeps, and small tanks. ~ D. F. Howard© June 1, 2014

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Portion of the American Cemetery in Normandy, France.

Death Tolls: Germany had 320,000 deaths, followed by the United States with 135,000, then the United Kingdom, Canada, and France where the last three all with less than 65,000.

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The OVERLORD ARCH located at the National D-DAY Memorial in Bedford, Virginia USA.

Courtesy of Wikipedia. The National D-Day Memorial is a war memorial located in Bedford, Virginia. It serves as the national memorial for American D-Day veterans. However, its scope is international in that it states, “In Tribute to the valor, fidelity and sacrifice of Allied Forces on D-Day, June 6, 1944” and commends all Allied Armed Forces during the D-Day invasion of Normandy, France on June 6, 1944 during World War II.[1] The memorial, bordering the Blue Ridge Mountains in southwestern Virginia, is an area comprising 88 acres (360,000 m2) that overlooks the town of Bedford. It officially opened on June 6, 2001 with 15,000 people present, one of whom was then-President George W. Bush.[2] About 70,000 people have visited the memorial each year. Of those, more than half are from outside of Virginia. Bedford was selected for the National D-Day memorial because the town suffered the greatest per capita loss of life during the invasion of any town in the country.[3]

**Note”” As a U.S. Navy Veteran & wife of a Retired US Navy Chief Petty Officer, as well as the daughter & daughter-in-law of two wonderful WWII Veteran fathers ~ this Jersey Girl couldn’t help but include a link to the Naval History & Heritage page on the D-Day Landings on June 6, 1944. ~ JGT

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Honor Courage Commitment!

Thank you to My Daddy & Pop Howard for your honorable sacrifice(s) during this horrific (WWII) War. Your children (Veterans) also knowingly respect the personal sacrifices you made for our wonderful country & to all of the Citizens of ~ The GREAT United States of America!

Donald W. Flint US Army Air Force 1942 – 1945

John Howard, US Army, 1942 -1943

I AM AN AMERICAN SAILOR

I Am An American Sailor!th5D0OF9UM

Hear my voice, America!  Though I speak through the mist of 200 years, my shout for freedom will echo through liberty’s halls for many centuries to come. Hear me speak, for my words are of truth and justice, and the rights of man. For those ideals I have spilled my blood upon the world’s troubled waters. Listen well, for my time is eternal -yours is but a moment. I am the spirit of heroes past and future! 

I am the American Sailor. I was born upon the icy shores at Plymouth, rocked upon the waves of the Atlantic, and nursed in the wilderness of Virginia. I cut my teeth on New England codfish, and I was clothed in southern cotton. I built muscle at the halyards of New Bedford whalers, and I gained my sea legs high atop mizzen of Yankee clipper ships.

Yes, I am the American Sailor, one of the greatest seamen the world has ever known. The sea is my home and my words are tempered by the sound of paddle wheels on the Mississippi and the song of whales off Greenland’s barren shore. My eyes have grown dim from the glare of sunshine on blue water, and my heart is full of star-strewn nights under the Southern Cross. My hands are raw from winter storms while sailing down round the Horn, and they are blistered from the heat of cannon broadside while defending our nation.  I am the American Sailor, and I have seen the sunset of a thousand distant, lonely lands.

 bonhomme_richardI am the American Sailor. It was I who stood tall beside John Paul Jones as he shouted, “I have not yet begun to fight!”  I fought upon the Lake Erie with Perry, and I rode with Stephen Decatur into Tripoli harbor to burn Philadelphia.  I met Guerriere aboard Constitution, and I was lashed to the mast with Admiral Farragut at Mobile Bay. I have heard the clang of Confederate shot against the sides of Monitor. I have suffered the cold with Peary at the North Pole, and I responded when Dewy said, “You may fire when ready Gridley,” at Manila Bay.  It was I who transported supplies through submarine infested waters when our soldiers were called “over there.”  I was there as Admiral Byrd crossed the South Pole.  It was I who went down with the Arizona at Pearl Harbor, who supported our troops at Inchon, and patrolled dark deadly waters of the Mekong Delta. 

 thI6IANB6VI am the American Sailor and I wear many faces. I am a pilot soaring across God’s blue canopy and I am a Seabee atop a navy-seal3dusty bulldozer in the South Pacific. I am a corpsman nursing the wounded in the jungle, and I am a Torpedoman in the Nautilus deep beneath the North Pole. I am hard and I am strong. But it was my eyes that filled with tears when my brother went down with the Thresher, and it was my heart that rejoiced when Commander Shepherd rocketed into orbit above the earth. It was I who languished in a Viet Cong prison camp, and it was I who walked upon the moon. It was I who saved the Stark and the Samuel B. Roberts in the mine infested waters of the Persian Gulf.  It was I who pulled my brothers from the smoke filled compartments of the Bonefish and wept when my shipmates died on the Iowa and White Plains. When called again, I was there, on the tip of the spear for Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

 I am the American Sailor.  I am woman, I am man, I am white and black, yellow, red and brown. I am Jew, Muslim, Christian, and Buddhist. I am Irish, Filipino, African, French, Chinese, and Indian.  And my standard is the outstretched hand of Liberty. Today, I serve around the world; on land, in air, on and under the sea. I serve proudly, at peace once again, but with the fervent prayer that I need not be called again. Tell your children of me. Tell them of my sacrifice, and how my spirit soars above their country. I have spread the mantle of my nation over the ocean, and I will guard her forever.  I am her heritage and yours. ~ I am the American Sailor.   (Written by: ~MUCM J. Wallace, USN)

 

PN1 Dorian F. Howard, US Navy 1979 – 1990

 

 

 

 

ENC Luke D. Howard, US Navy- Retired (1978 – 1999)

 

My husband & I met in 1986 and married the following March. Three months later, Luke deployed back to sea duty. His ship, (USS Butte AE-27)  was part of the USS Saratoga CV-60 battle group that was on deployment in the Mediterranean Sea. The year was 1987.  The mission was highly Top Secret so I didn’t hear from him for several months!   Ever heard of Operation Goldenrod ? Keeping secrets from your wife after only a few months of marriage can be deadly, however; this Navy wife understood completely!  And yes, we’re still married!

 

 

ASH WEDNESDAY

I was raised Presbyterian by a Roman Catholic mother & Protestant father who believed that we should definitely attend Sunday School as children,  but that it was wiser to let my brother & me make our own decisions as to which faith we would eventually embrace as adults. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lenten discipline for observant Christians & especially Catholics. It is traditionally a time of fasting and prayer in preparation for receiving or reaffirming baptism at Easter. For some Christians, Lent is a time to think about one’s life choices and mortality, as well as reflect on life directions. It serves as a wakeup call for some Christians. There are also those who choose this time of the year to donate to charities or take part in charity events as a way to get close to God. For all my friends & family who celebrate this day, & especially for those that don’t ~ God Bless You All! ~JGT  

WHAT IS ASH WEDNESDAY? Excerpted from: Catholic Online:

Ash Wednesday is one of the most popular and important holy days in the Christian calendar. Ash Wednesday opens Lent, a season of fasting and prayer.  Ash Wednesday takes place 46 days before Easter Sunday, and is chiefly observed by Catholics, although many other Christians observe it too.  Ash Wednesday comes from the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting. The practice includes the wearing of ashes on the head. The ashes symbolize the dust from which God made us. As the priest applies the ashes to a person’s forehead, he speaks the words: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Alternatively, the priest may speak the words, “Repent and believe in the Gospel.” The Ashes also symbolize grief, in this case, grief that we have sinned and caused division from God. Many Catholics believe that the wearing of ashes is a sign of penance. Priests administer ashes during Mass and all are invited to accept the ashes as a visible symbol of penance. Even non-Christians and the excommunicated are welcome to receive the ashes. The ashes are made from blessed palm branches, taken from the previous year’s palm Sunday Mass.

It is important to remember that Ash Wednesday is a day of penitential prayer and fasting. Some faithful take the rest of the day off work and remain home. It is generally inappropriate to dine out, to shop, or to go about in public after receiving the ashes. Feasting is highly inappropriate. Small children, the elderly and sick are exempt from this observance.

It is not required that a person wear the ashes for the rest of the day, and they may be washed off after Mass. However, many people keep the ashes as a reminder until the evening. Recently, movements have developed that involve pastors distributing ashes to passersby in public places. This isn’t considered taboo, but Catholics should know this practice is distinctly Protestant. Observant Catholics should always receive ashes within the context of Mass. However; Priests are allowed to deliver ashes to those who are sick or shut-in.

 

I AM STILL HERE

I stood by you, near your bed last night,

I came to have a peep.

I could see that you were crying,

you found it hard to sleep.

I whined to you softly,

as you brushed away a tear,

“It’s me,” I said, “I haven’t left you,

I’m well. I’m fine. I’m still here.”

I was close to you at breakfast,

I watched you pour the tea.

You were thinking of the many times,

your hands reached down to me.

I was with you at the store today,

Your arms were getting sore.

I longed to take your heavy bags,

I wish I could do more.

I was with you at my grave today,

You tend it with such care.

I want to reassure you,

that I’m not lying there.

I walked with you towards the house,

as you fumbled for your key.

I gently put my paw on you,

I smiled and said, “It’s me.”

You looked so very tired,

as you sank into a chair.

I tried so hard to let you know,

that I was standing there.

It’s possible for me to be,

so near you every day –

 to say to you with certainty,

“I never went away.”

You sat there very quietly,

then smiled – I think you knew.

In the stillness of that evening,

I was very close to you.

The day is over now,

I smile as I watch you yawn.

“Goodnight, God bless, my Friend,

I’ll see you in the morning.”

And when the time is right for you,

to cross the brief divide,

I’ll rush across to greet you,

and we’ll stand there, side by side.

I have so many things to show you,

there is so much for you to see.

 Be patient, live your journey out,

then come home and spend ~eternity with me.

~ Author Unknown~