This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Support the troops

  • WWP vs Gun Talk

    Several of you have sent us links to the dust-up about Wounded Warrior Project not partnering with Gun Talk for donations to their worthy cause. For those of you might not have heard of it yet, the folks at Gun Talk offered a walk on their program to WWP and Leslie Coleman of WWP declined the offer. the response read;

    WWP does not co-brand, create cause marketing campaigns or receive a percentage or a portion of proceeds from companies in which the product or message is sexual, political or religious in nature, or from alcohol or firearms companies.

    Our position regarding firearms and alcohol is in response to the struggles that many injured service members face with substance abuse and suicide and the roles those items often play in those issues.

    While I may disagree with Coleman on the instances of firearm-related suicides among the troops (many of the suicides are accomplished with motor vehicles, would WWP not take the same offer from General Motors?), but the way I see it, WWP does a lot of good for the troops and at least their hearts are in the right place, although in error. They haven’t spent their money on campaigning for gun control, they have no influence on gun control policy. I think that the good they do outweighs their misbegotten policy.

    I’m sorry if I’m not the rabid pro-gun stereotypical nutjob on this that won’t allow deviation from “guns for everyone” policy, but I like to think I’m pragmatic, at least in this regard. Wounded Warrior project hasn’t been harping on gun control or advocating for taking guns from the troops, they just have a policy, like everyone else.

    I’ve been kicked off of jury duty because I’m an NRA member. The judges in those cases thought I would be biased and rule in favor of the defendant because I’d think that everyone should have guns. But I don’t, and the NRA doesn’t think, criminals should have guns and someone carrying a handgun in the streets of DC is a criminal since they’re in violation of gun laws that I don’t agree with. What does that have to do with this? Like I said, I’m pragmatic and practical when it comes to guns.

    You’re free to disagree with me, like some of you always do, without me going Michael Yon on you. But, honestly, I don’t see the big deal of WWP having a policy against associating themselves with an issue that’s clearly outside their lane.

  • Brothers return honor to family of hero

    Ret12B40 sends us a link to the story of two brothers, Michael and Mauro Mazzariello, 11 and 8 respectively, who found some medals in an antique shop that belonged to someone they’d never met and they decided to return the medals to the family where they belonged;

    The purple heart, bronze star and good conduct awards they found in the tiny New York shop belonged to the namesake of Asheville, N.C.’s Veterans Affairs Medical Center and a recipient of the United States’ highest military honor, the medal of honor.

    “We went in looking for a G.I. Joe Real American Hero and came out with a real American hero,” the 6th grader Michael said.

    The Mazzariello boys got to see the awards united with George’s family at a Veteran’s Day ceremony in North Carolina on Monday.

    “It was the most satisfying moment of my life, to finally give the medals back to them,” Michael said.

    I figured you’d like this one because it’s so rarely that we see someone return someone else’s valor.

  • CFA’s Veterans’ Day video

    So, I’m sitting here watching Band of Brothers for millionth time and the folks at Concerned Veterans of America send us their Veterans’ Day message in video form;

  • Celebrities Pose In Pin-Up Calendar To Support Hospitalized Vets

    Our buddy, Gina Elise, asked us to let y’all know that her calender for 2013 has been released. I’ll let her tell you about it;

    “Pin-Ups For Vets” President and Founder, Gina Elise, is proud to announce the release of the charity’s much-awaited 2013 fundraiser calendar that features TV and film celebrities posing as 1940’s pin-up girls. The 7th annual calendar produced by the nonprofit costs only $10.00 and can be purchased on the organization’s website:www.PinUpsForVets.com.

    Supporters can also purchase the popular calendars by mailing a (tax deductible) check to:

    Pin-Ups For Vets, PO Box 3323, Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91729.

    The proceeds from the calendar sales have helped purchase new rehabilitation equipment for VA Hospitals across the U.S.

    Visitors to the website can order a calendar for themselves, for a hospitalized Veteran, or for a deployed service member. Gina Elise and her volunteer 1940’s pin-up girls personally make thousands of bedside visits each year in VA Hospitals to deliver the donated calendars.

    Pin-Ups For Vets is currently on a 50-state VA Hospital Tour and has as its mission to show appreciation to our ill and injured Vets in hospitals all across the USA.

    In addition to boosting morale in the hospital wards, the Pin-Ups For Vets calendars are also packed into care packages and shipped to the troops deployed across the globe. The deployed troops are currently requesting calendars for their units, and the charity encourages citizens to donate a calendar or two to let our service members know that they are appreciated for their service to our Country. The popular calendars have helped our troops pass the time during their long tours of duty.

    The Pin-Ups For Vets organization is also very proud to announce that Founder Gina Elise was selected as a finalist in the 2012 Spirit of the Entrepreneur Awards program, that was held on November 7 at the Ontario Convention Center in Ontario, California. Gina Elise was chosen in the Social Entrepreneur category, and she is part of a select group of 25 entrepreneurs from throughout Southern Caifornia’s Inland Empire chosen for their outstanding entrepreneurial leadership and accomplishments.

    Pin-Ups For Vets, an award-winning national nonprofit organization that benefits hospitalized Veterans has been honored by Oprah Winfrey, as well as the deployed troops, who have flown 9 American flags in honor of the outstanding support the organization has shown to America’s service members and Veterans.

  • Kid Rock; Let’s Ride

    You might want to turn up the speakers, grab some rum on the rocks and fire up a cigar while you listen to this;

    Thanks to Michael Yore for the link.

  • Town remembers SSG Derek Farley

    SSG Derek Farley has a bridge in Nassau Rensselaer County County, NY;

    Staff Sgt. Derek Farley would not have wanted anything named in his honor, said his mother, Carrie Farley.

    “He would be yelling at me right now if he saw this,” she said with a smile Sunday at a ceremony naming the bridge after her son, who was killed Aug. 17, 2010 trying to defuse a roadside bomb in the western Afghanistan city of Farah. “He wouldn’t have wanted the attention. He was a soldier through and through.”

    A small stretch of pavement and stone on Route 20, The Staff Sergeant Derek Farley Memorial Bridge runs over the Valatie Kill, right on the Schodack-Nassau town line. The road is a main artery for many who commute through Rensselaer County.

    “When people drive to and from work, they’re going to see this and remember Derek,” said Assemblyman Steve McLaughlin, R-Schaghticoke.

    Naming the bridge after Farley was McLaughlin’s idea.

    They don’t do it to get pieces of public property named after them, but if that’s what it takes to remind people of their sacrifices….

  • Budding novelist wants your help

    Steadfast&Loyal wrote us yesterday about the novel he’s writing, and he wants you guys to take part in the venture;

    [M]y…goal is to be an author and well….my first book is just about complete and I am trying to raise money for it. My plan is to do it as an ebook, and self publish it through Amazon and Apple iBook store. I started a Kickstarter project (here is the link: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1684113160/a-soldiers-truth-my-first-novel) to do so. Not sure if you know Kickstarter but it is a funding platform for creative projects. Everything from films, games, and music to art, design, and technology. Kickstarter is full of ambitious, innovative, and imaginative projects that are brought to life through the direct support of others. It is a great site, and has sucked me dry in projects I have supported….so if be careful (I am a geek at heart and LOVE board games).

    The book is about Eric West, a former SF NCO. His peace is shattered when he is framed for murder and for trafficking military weapons to foreign nations. On the run and suffering from Post Traumatic Stress after ten years in the Army Special Forces, Eric is forced underground. His back against the wall and his friends in danger, Eric stands up to the demons of his past in order to find out who was behind the murder and framing him. Eric’s Special Forces training is the only thing keeping him from one step ahead of his enemies as he plays a deadly game of cat and mouse across the city of Detroit.

    What he finds is a conspiracy far larger then he imagined possible.

    I am already well into the novel, at the time of this posting about 70,000 words of an estimated 100,000. I write daily, minimum 2000 words (I can do more but I do have a full time job). I expect the book to be ready for publishing in 1 May 2013 and like I said out on Amazon and iBook Store.

    What am I asking? If you could just get the word out. Thanks!

    So if you want to give him a kick start on his dream, throw him a coupla bucks at the link above. We’ve had some luck with this blog’s denizens helping veteran artists out on Kickstart.

  • Veteran hockey league in Tampa

    Erich sends us news that there’s a veteran hockey league in Tampa, FL looking for new members. From the ABC local news;

    [US Army National Guard Spc. Jim Rathbone] and fellow veteran, Andy Boutilier, created the Veterans Hockey League.

    The brand new league of 15 players practiced on the Forum ice Wednesday morning. The Lightning also donated their practice jerseys.

    “This is a great opportunity for us to expand on giving back to the community,” said Dave Andreychuk, VP of Fan and Business Development for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    Many of the veterans called Wednesday’s practice a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

    “They’ve never been in the Lightning’s locker room,” said Boutilier, now the league’s president. “They’ve never been on this ice.”

    Except, the fun is about to become a lot more common, because the Lightning plans to allow the men to skate even after the lock out ends.

    Erich says that they’ll want to see a DD214 and membership in USA Hockey. Here’s their website, if you’re interested. I know we get a lot of traffic from Tampa, for some odd reason.