Wednesday, September 26, 2007

It's Been Pretty Blue Around Here......

What with Bob becoming a Chief Petty Officer and Gary's confirmation hearing coming up tomorrow. So Blue in fact that FbL missed a story about MG Rick Lynch. We can't have that! I am a Navy girl.....but I do love Rick. So here's a story that was sent me this morning.

Military Salute--Major General Rick Lynch
Dal Cannady
09/25/07
With Third Infantry soldiers deployed to Iraq, the face of the division returned home for a few days. Major General Rick Lynch spent part of his time back here spreading the message of what is happening over there.
From ceremony to ceremony, he spent his time talking to and about the troops. He pinned purple hearts on a dozen wounded soldiers. At Warrior's Walk, he comforted families and paid tribute to soldiers killed in combat. Despite the losses, he said democracy is winning in Iraq. But he publicly criticized the national media for ignoring the progress and focusing on the setbacks and challenges.
"You'd think they wanted to share both sides of the story," he stated. "But all we tend to get is the bad news."
The general reported attacks on US soldiers and on Iraqi citizens are down in the region Third Infantry protects. They team with Iraqis police in training and citizens who just want the violence to stop.
"We pick the worst places where the enemy holds and we put a base there and we own it," he explained.
But the general showed his emotions at times. He bowed his head and wiped his eyes during a video presentation that combined Third Infantry pictures with Toby Keith's "American Soldier."
Lynch admitted wearing his heart on his sleeve but carrying something else with him.
"I carry the pictures of fallen soldiers either Marne Division or Task Force Marne," he said as he pulled a pack of cards from his pocket. "These are 104 of our soldiers. Every day I look at these pictures and I ask two questions. The first is, 'did we do all we could to prevent this loss?' And the answer is, 'yes.'"
Lynch says moral remains high as he sees soldiers reenlist all the time. He hopes people at home can remain as optimistic. General Lynch's efforts to sustain troops and their families earns him a WTOC Military Salute.
Please allow me to add a Swabbie Doxie's Bravo Zulu!

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