Author: TSO

I am consumed by the story of Richard E. Owen [even I screwed it up], SGT, Easy Company, 2/506 PIR. Absolutely consumed. I’ve spent the day calling folks when I am afraid of the phone, reading census reports, and just blindly contacting folks on the off chance that they can help. So, let me tell you what we now know, what we think, and what comes next.

First, the background in case you haven’t read the other post. A Salvation Army Captain in upstate NY found an original Purple Heart citation and framed picture of Richard E. Owen, a SGT who died on D-Day. I’m going to find a family member and get that Purple Heart and picture to them. I refuse to believe that this hero goes unremembered.

I’m working with another guy on this, from the Pathfinder Historical Consultants. I want to share his nutshelling, since he did it better than I could.

After the jump.
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Told you I was a bit PMSy today, so bear with me as well.

What’s the opposite of Stolen Valor? I mean, we know how many liars and frauds out there seek glory and honor through word and not deed, but what of a man whose heroism is unknown, and who can’t defend himself. For my part, it kills me a little inside each time that one of these guys lies, and I find joy in tearing them down. Judging from the number of comments we get on this, so do you. Well, I have a new task for y’all. Let’s honor a man who deserves it.

First, watch this video, and then almost immediately wipe it from your mind. I’m not going to take this opportunity to bash the media, but that story had some serious problems, not the least of which is that the historian repeatedly used the name “Robert Owen” when the guys actual name is Richard Owen.

For those who can’t see the video, or anything else, this is the story. A Salvation Army Captain in upstate NY the other day was going through a box of donations when he found a purple heart citation and framed picture of Richard E. Owen. (see above) I want to find Mr. Owen’s family and get them the citation and plaque. And if they are the ones that threw this stuff away, I am going to find a home for it. Whether it be this guy’s home townhall, or a museum or something.

Richard Owen was a SGT who served in Easy company, 2/506th PIR, the famed Band of Brothers. He died in the plane crash at St Mere Eglise on June 6, 1944.

Find me his family if you can. I’ve tried contacting the 506th alumni, and none of the email addys worked. Anyone have any ideas other than wait for the records to come in from NPRC?

Not even a little surprising to me, especially since I have read everything printed on this issue:

Durham police arrested Duke lacrosse accuser Crystal Gale Mangum, 33, late Wednesday after she allegedly assaulted her boyfriend, set his clothes on fire in a bathtub and threatened to stab him.

Authorities charged her with attempted first-degree murder, five counts of arson, assault and battery, communicating threats, three counts of misdemeanor child abuse, injury to personal property, identity theft and resisting a public officer.

Love to know how the Lacrosse guys are doing now. I bet they are all doing fairly well, having lived through that nightmare can only toughen someone up.

Was mich nicht umbringt macht mir starker and all that.

OK, I think I may be suffering sympathy PMS because all kinds of sensitive today. Anyway, in our morning meeting one young lady was discussing a nascient trip to Spokane, Washington and someone said something to the effect that Spokane ain’t Honolulu. Not sure why I said it, but I piped up with “Dude, that’s where Loudon Swain is from.”

Now, probably the VAST majority of you won’t get that reference. But, if ever a movie could be said to have influenced my life, it was that one. From the time Vision Quest came out in 1985 until about 1992, I would hazard to guess that I averaged watching it once week the entire time. In 1987 alone I fell asleep to that movie on my DVD player every single night from Sept onward. The night before matches I would sit down with a bowl of ice cubes and some celery and just watch that movie.

Anyway, guess it paid off to an extent. So, here are my favorite clips:
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Generally speaking I don’t watch bus fight videos, because it’s always some poor bastard getting beat on for wearing the wrong jacket or something equally ridiculous. I like this one though, since the underdog lays an asswhupping on the dude. I read somewhere else he is a Viet Nam vet, and if he isn’t, I don’t want to know. Anyway, go on over to “A Blog Knock Life” for your feel-good, Davie whips Goliath’s ass story.

I can’t decide what the funniest part is, the guy bleeding everywhere and the woman saying he is “leaking” or the fact that the thug in question just had an epic beat down administered to him, and he is still talking trash when the dude has left the bus. Either way, I like thinking that this guy was an 11B once upon a time, humping through the hills, and even now he’s still not taking any shit.

Dicksmith:

Our senior military leaders want to end DADT. The experience of the CJCS is that junior and mid-career servicemembers want to end DADT. Even Dick Cheney wants to end DADT. I challenge anyone to give me one sound, reasonable excuse for why the policy is in place. I can’t think of any facet of it that makes any sense, whatsoever.

How about you get your Democratic masters to change the law? I know you don’t give a shit about the law, but the Constitution vests with Congress law making powers and regulation of the Armed Forces. (Google Art I, Section 8 Dick.)

10 US Code 654

(13) The prohibition against homosexual conduct is a longstanding element of military law that continues to be necessary in the unique circumstances of military service.
(14) The armed forces must maintain personnel policies that exclude persons whose presence in the armed forces would create an unacceptable risk to the armed forces’ high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability.
(15) The presence in the armed forces of persons who demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability.

Whatever you do, stop posing bullshit questions you know the answer too in an effort to use rhetoric to shift blame. Hold your parties feet to the fire instead of bending over and grabbing your own for them.

Bellavia on the 2 man Luge:

Any sport invented in the living room of Rock Hudson’s 1954 Honolulu bungalow is not an Olympic event. It may be a story so painful that you can only recount it through “puppet therapy,” but is certainly not something that if you rate in the top three in the world that you should be given a medal.

On the sticker kerfluffle:

But aren’t the slogans the IOC are fearful of, things like: “more Ovaltine please” or “keep your Bible out of my vagina?”

Those are the bad slogans.

I’ve never met a guy who can more regularly make me laugh then Bells. The first time he told me about his underground play I thought he was making it up. I swear, every time I see the guy my gut hurts from laughing.