Are we running out of time or running out of excuses?

The more I study the overall history of mankind, the more I wonder why we haven't done something a bit more positive, to change the stupidity that mankind has shown in his behavior. With all the statistics that are available on line, statistics that give you the body count in millions, I believe that the greatest thing we did was rid ourselves of tyranny when kicked every red coat ass we could get our hands on.

Don't forget that the first lesson that was given to Cornwallis when he was forced to surrender unconditionally to Washington, wasn't enough. Remember the Battle of New Orleans? I think that was sometime around 1812 or 1814.

With that in mind, please know that I for one, am more clear than ever, that Americans have done more to alleviate the sufferings of man than any other nation I can think of. If you are a regular reader here, I'm sure that you've been given enough statistics to prove that claim to be true.

If you don't agree completely with that statement, you might at least agree that we aren't seeing any more accounts of 6 million murders here, 20 million casualties there or anything that's even close to that.

Despite those facts, it appears that even though we helped remove the murderous dictators from power, dictators that murdered millions and caused the deaths of tens of millions, apparently, the job ain't over yet. We are now seeing signs that proclaim "We will dominate the world". With regard to that, I say: "You won't dominate my part of the world, asshole".

In recent years, after I came up with the idea that I needed to do something to help the cause, I concluded that the best thing I could do would be to inspire men like me, combat veterans, to do something positive to help out the guys that have to go undo all the things that threaten our lives. Some might say that it's a selfish idea that is intended to keep me off the roles of those who are listed as "killed in action", but I assure you, it's way more than that.

As a first step I took a look at the devotion to God, Country and then, the various units that every Veteran served with during their time in service. My first unit, The 199th Light Infantry Brigade, according to the net, is no longer around. I have remained in contact with several members of the old "Fireball Aviation" section, but there isn't a post or Fort that I'm aware of, where I can contribute anything.

On the other hand, the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment is still alive and, according to Curt, Ed, and John, they are doing very well in California and are commanded by the best of the best. I can not tell you how pleased I was to read about Curt's explanation that focused on the character that exists in their command staff.

It does my heart and soul good to know that but experience also delivered a little paranoia with Curt's report. I began to wonder what it would be like for the command staff to receive the kinds of orders that hindered their ability to perform.

I say that because I remember the shock we all had when we heard that we were no longer allowed to defoliate the jungle and take away the very foliage that the VC and the NVA hid behind. To this day, I consider that to be a lame ass decision that cost Dan and Blick their lives and further caused the medical evacuation of others who were so badly wounded that they could no longer fly combat missions. Many of you here know who they are, Manny, Mike O, Bock and many others.

In addition to that, I remember the concerns from Raider 6 when he realized that this particular decision aided and abetted the enemy in their efforts to ambush the ground troops and shoot down the Scout pilots that were trying to track them through the jungle.

I can only imagine what it's like now. I don't know the specifics that tie the hands behind the back of our commanders and the troops under their command, but you can bet your ass that they're out there. Having said all that and still being un-effective in my wishes to help them out, I began to wonder if I'm running out of time or running out of excuses. Thus the title of this post.

Hand salute to the command staff of our men and women. We support you much more than we are able to show..........at this time.