Monday 11 November 2013

A SALUTE AT THIS TIME, and in THESE DAYS

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A special salute to all American veterans who have honourably served.
A special shout out to:
 
 
Petty Officer David Christian (retired),  United States Coast Guard, serving in Baltimore during the Muslim Extremist Assaults 

El Zorro USAF (Viet Nam) - Sergeant,  jet/tech and special out-of-theatre ops
 
Gunnery Sergeant Cesar (retired) Macedonia, Iraq,  and Afghanistan
 
El Gringo Viejo's brother-in-law Sergeant Robert USAF (retired)
 
Father-in-law who is now with the Angels, Sergeant  Jesus, United States Army Air Corps, North Africa
 
El Gringo Viejo's father, Ist Lieutenant Milton Birchard, United
States Cavalry, Ist Division, 12th Regiment, mounted (now with his
consuegro Jesus, also with the Angels)
 
El Gringo Viejo's consuegro, Petty Officer John, United States Navy, Mediterranean and World-wide 
  
And to my grandfather's two brothers, Pennsylvania 96th Regiment of Volunteer Infantry, one who died one the month before and the other one month after the Battle at Gettysburg.
 
And to my several Confederate combat veterans, eleven in total, four of whom were killed in action or died of their wounds at a later point, and seven of whom survived.


  • A toast to my brothers this Veteran's Day:

    "...This story shall the good man teach his son;
    And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by,
    From this day to the ending of the world,
    But we in it shall be remember'd;
    We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
    For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
    Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
    This day shall gentle his condition:
    And gentlemen in England now a-bed
    Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
    And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
    That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day." 
    -Henry V, A4 S3
 

(a quiet note to family and friends - my son was left off the list due to my own re-re-re-editing, and failure to note that he had been deleted from the list of honour.   He also had the honour of standing in the sleet and  snow on the day of the inauguration of George Bush in January of 2001, serving as a traffic and clearance guard.   Another oddity, perhaps, is that a fellow with his same Christian Name and his same surname was on board one of the planes that hit the Twin Towers.   It was somewhat disconcerting to receive calls and/or emails from various folks who knew that our boy was serving up there in the same area.  Pray for America)