{"id":26980,"date":"2011-10-12T18:53:14","date_gmt":"2011-10-12T22:53:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/valorguardians.com\/blog\/?p=26980"},"modified":"2011-10-12T18:55:58","modified_gmt":"2011-10-12T22:55:58","slug":"make-a-fair-wind-of-it-homeward","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/?p=26980","title":{"rendered":"Make a Fair Wind of it Homeward"},"content":{"rendered":"

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On this day, 11 years ago, \u00a0in the Port of Aden, Yemen, 17 sailors were killed and 40 injured aboard the USS Cole, while it was in port for a routine refueling stop. \u00a0Al Qaeda claimed responsibility. \u00a0Sailors were lining up in the galley for lunch when cowards blew their little boat up causing a 40 foot gash in the hull.<\/p>\n

They were honored, today, at the Cole memorial at Naval Station Norfolk. \u00a0 CBSnews.com<\/a>\u00a0reported:<\/p>\n

The Cole’s current commanding officer, Cmdr. Andrew Ehlers, said during a rainy ceremony at the Cole’s homeport in Norfolk that much has changed since the last time they gathered to honor the victims a year ago. He noted that terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden was hunted down and killed and that al-Nashiri now faces criminal charges.<\/p>\n

“Finally, perhaps, justice will be done,” he said….<\/p>\n

Each of the victims’ names were read as a bell rang and a wreath was laid at a monument in their honor. About two dozen people who attended the ceremony sought shelter from the rain under the 28 black pine trees at the monument, which symbolize the 17 sailors who lost their lives and the 11 children they left behind.<\/p>\n

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I remember hitting my knees in front of the television, \u00a08 years after I’d set foot on a Navy base for the last time, crying as if I knew those \u00a0kids, \u00a0personally. \u00a0I was stunned. \u00a0Outraged. \u00a0Overwhelmed with grief. \u00a0The rage and pain I felt \u00a0would, \u00a0sadly, be understood by average Americans less than a year later, in September.<\/p>\n

Americans would do well to remember the words of President Clinton at the memorial service:<\/p>\n

The idea of common humanity and unity amidst diversity, so purely embodied by those we mourn today, must surely confound the minds of the hate-filled terrorists who killed them. They envy our strength without understanding the values that give us strength. For them, it is their way or no way: their interpretation, twisted though it may be, of a beautiful religious tradition; their polit<\/span><\/strong>ical views; their racial and ethnic views. Their way or no way.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Such people can take innocent life.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Remember them today, and the cowardice of our enemy in their little boats. They’ve no chance at success with their twisted excuses for homicide against the strength of a people endeavoring to do right.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Fallen:<\/p>\n

Chief Petty Officer\u00a0Richard\u00a0Costelow<\/a>, Morrisville, Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n

Signalman Seaman Recruit\u00a0Cheron\u00a0Luis\u00a0Gunn,<\/a>\u00a0Rex, Georgia.<\/p>\n

Seaman James Rodrick\u00a0McDaniels, Norfolk, Virginia.<\/p>\n

Seaman Recruit Lakiba Nicole Palmer, San Diego, California.<\/p>\n

Operations Specialist 2nd Class Timothy Lamont Saunders,\u00a0Ringgold, Virginia.<\/p>\n

Ensign Andrew Triplett, Macon, Mississippi.<\/p>\n

Seaman Apprentice Craig Bryan\u00a0Wibberley,\u00a0Williamsport, Maryland.<\/p>\n

Hull Maintenance Technician 3rd Class,\u00a0Kenneth Eugene\u00a0Clodfelter,<\/a>\u00a0Mechanicsville, Virginia.<\/p>\n

Mess Management Specialist Seaman\u00a0Lakeina\u00a0Monique Francis,\u00a0Woodleaf, North Carolina.<\/p>\n

Information Systems Technician Seaman Timothy Lee\u00a0Gauna, Rice, Texas<\/p>\n

Engineman 2nd Class Mark Ian Nieto, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.<\/p>\n

Electronics Warfare Technician 3rd Class\u00a0Ronald Scott Owens,\u00a0<\/a>Vero\u00a0Beach, Florida.<\/p>\n

Engineman\u00a0Fireman Joshua\u00a0Langdon\u00a0Parlett,\u00a0Churchville, Maryland.<\/p>\n

Fireman Apprentice Patrick Howard Roy, Cornwall on Hudson, New York.<\/p>\n

Electronics Warfare Technician 2nd Class Kevin Shawn\u00a0Rux, Portland, North Dakota.<\/p>\n

Mess Management Specialist 3rd Class\u00a0Ronchester\u00a0Mananga\u00a0Santiago,\u00a0Kingsville, Texas<\/p>\n

Fireman Gary Graham Swenchonis Jr., Rockport, Texas<\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

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 <\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  On this day, 11 years ago, \u00a0in the Port of Aden, Yemen, 17 sailors were … Make a Fair Wind of it Homeward<\/span>Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":601,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,119,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-historical","category-navy","category-terror-war"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/601"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=26980"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26980\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=26980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=26980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=26980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}