I just received this story from an old comrade – it’s amazing to me sometimes how much sense this made six years ago, and how different the world has become in the interim. Still, a compelling read:
“I was the lead for our first strikes against Tora Bora, but before the mission we had a ceremony on the flight deck where some folks brought out a flag from the WTC rubble. It was a fairly large, ripped, and torn American Flag. As we were going through our ceremony they subsequently raised the flag aloft on our mast. Once the flag had been hoisted a light breeze blew by and you could, for the first time, just see how tattered that flag was. I remember a profound sense of pride that after all that flag had been through she had a chance to fly above an American warship preparing to extract revenge on those who put her in that condition.
We were to brief for our mission at 2100 (9:00pm) launch at midnight and hit our target at 3:00am. After the briefing I walked up to the bridge and met with the ship’s Captain. I told him that I wanted the flag; I wanted to take it with me on our mission to Tora Bora. At first he was incredulous, thinking that he was responsible for what was a national treasure. I told him that I wasn
Yes Sir, a much simpler time. A time when everyone remembered WHY we were over there. We had a united purpose. Our mission was clear, not muddled with politics and hidden agendas.
Is it wrong to think back to that time with some version of fondness? Wistfulness? I may not be saying that right but…
Web Reconnaissance for 08/09/2007…
A short recon of what?ǂ
Web Reconnaissance for 08/09/2007…
A short recon of whats out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day…so check back often….
Thank you for posting this. I vividly remember all of my emotions at the time of the attack, and the anxious days waiting for the United States military to go on the offensive, and the pride and the relief that I felt when we took the war to our enemies in such an effective way. I remember getting tears in my eyes when I read in the newspaper that the very first plane to drop bombs on Taliban forces was carrying a flag from the Twin Towers. I called my father to tell him that detail, and he got choked up too. Having this background to the story makes that memory even more precious. I love it that our military still understands the power of symbolism.
Shipmates,
It’s been ever that way. From the larger symbolic acts, to smaller, personal ones.
My grandfather carried a rosary with him when he was deployed to France in WWI. He gave it to my father, who carried it in the Pacific in WWII. My cousin carried it in Vietnam, and it was passed to me when I enlisted. I’ll pass it along to the next member of my family who enters the service.
Small tokens, small gestures, full of great meaning from a people with great hearts. We are not a people who take offense quickly, nor who rush wildly into war. But we are a people who remember, and our memories are very long.
It is always a good thing to remind our enemies of why we fight.
Respects,
Seems like ancient history..don’t it?
Brought back some memories:
The picture-
http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/graphics/carrier/Viking.jpg
The context:
http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/Letters%202%20from%20USSTR.htm
b2
The spirit of Jimmy Doolittle…
Kris ~ you read my mind.
Some of us (those here on this blog) are still focused… I just wish that our whole nation was.
Jim C
I was not on Iwo when the Flag was raised on Suribachi, that was my Fathers generation of Marines and their war. I have through the years met several Marines who were present, to a man they describe it as the most profoundly moving occasion. In my time and in my war I was present at Hue in Feb ’68, there I was a grunt with Bravo 1/5 when our Flag went up over the citadel at a great and terrible cost. There’s something so very powerful in that flag to those of us who serve it. The symbolism beats in it as surely as in the human heart.
Brings a tear to my eye. And yes, it is amazing how different things are today.
“That night we extracted a profound revenge on lesser men” has made my week.
[...] the time to go read this post, over at Lex’s place.?Ǭ
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Way to go Sterno, job well done.
[...] 10, 2007 · No Comments Take the time to go read this post, over at Lex’s place. It says a [...]
[...] the time to go read this post, over at Lex’s place. It says a [...]