Duane Hammond Stagehand Fired for Wearing 'Bush' Shirt and Hat

Duane Hammond, a union worker in IATSE Local 33, has been told he will be brought up on charges for dressing inappropriately. The stage was in the process of being erected for a Barack Obama and Sen. Barbara Boxer rally. Hammond, in a radio interview with Sean Hannity this minute, says he believes  Obama and the White House had nothing to do with this. He believes his own union is solely responsible.

Duane Hammond's Sweatshirt

Hammond was told to remove his hat and turn his sweatshirt inside out. The shirt says "USS George H. W. Bush" with a picture of the ship. Hammond's son is serving on the USS George H. W. Bush. He says he only sees his son for a short time once a year.

The shirt and hat were worn to honor his son. His union supervisor has no honor, and Hammond was fired.

James Wright, a business representative from IATSE Local 33, says the union is still investigating what happened.

"If he was sent home because of the sweatshirt, he will be paid for the day," he said.

Hammond told Hannity he only went to the press when he was threatened with being charged. In the video he says he was humiliated...that he was only wearing his "son's flag, so to speak."

USS George H. W. Bush

My prediction is, Obama will step-in and this man will get his job back. If he doesn't, he is incredibly stupid. A 'thank you' Duane Hammond and his son for supporting and defending the USA. 

Posted by Maggie @ Maggie's Notebook

Content Scrapers: If you take my work for your own website, be sure to give me a link back as shown above.

Friendly Fire Kills Linda Norgrove?

Here it comes. The Mail Online (U.K.) is saying that "friendly fire" from Navy SEALs killed a British woman, Linda Norgrove, as they tried to save her life and rescuse her from Muslim Taliban thugs. Nato and the U.S. are launching an investigation. Of course they are.

Linda Norgrove, 36, was snatched by the Taliban along with three Afghan colleagues on September 26, 2010. She was traveling in a two-vehicle convoy. She wore a burka. It didn't save her. She was moved from mud hut to mud hut - over and over.

A senior security source said: 'It was clear from very early on that the level of threat was very high that she would be moved from the very bad people who were holding her to even worse people across the border in Pakistan.

The last thing we wanted was for her to be passed into the hands of Al Qaeda.

One-hundred and fifty "heavily armed U.S. troops, supported by Afghan soldiers, launched the raid in the early morning hours of Saturday - before the dawn call to prayer. The troops wore-night vision goggles. Predator drones and Apache attack helicopters were standing by.

Americans fight the Taliban small arms fire for half an hour, and then make it through to where Linda Norgrove lay, guarded by about 8 Taliban. They find her alive but "fatally wounded." Urgent medical aid tried desperately to save her life.

If you read my blog with any regularity, you know that I am exasperated and saddened at the number of Westerners who travel to these dangerous areas to work in Islamic countries where they are hated. I understand that Afghanistan women, especially, need all the help they can get, but when a lovely young woman like Norgrove is in their midst, they are sure to have a target on their back the minute they step foot in the country. Every American is a target.

There must be a realization that if you get in trouble, you put the lives of others at risk, and in Afghanistan, it makes fighting a war so much worse. Linda Norgrove was working toward an MBA at the University of Warwick. She worked for the UN in Afghanistan from 2005 to 2008 and returned there in February of this year. The UN cannot protect anyone. The UN does not protect anyone. Please. Find other, safer places to spread charity, and to do doctoral work. Stay home where you will not need our Military.

General David Petraeus notified Prime Minister David Cameron today that Linda Norgrove may have died of a grenade thrown by the SEALs. This according to Cameron:

Miss Norgrove’s life was in 'grave danger' from the moment she was seized and there were fears that she might be passed up the terrorist chain to bases in Pakistan and put at greater peril if she was not rescued. 

'I am clear that the best chance of saving Linda’s life was to go ahead, recognising that any operation was fraught with risk for all those involved and success was by no means guaranteed,' Mr Cameron said.

Here is the story from the U.K.:

A British aid worker may have died when U.S. special forces lobbed a grenade in a frantic bid to save her from the Taliban.

Linda Norgrove, 36, was fatally wounded when  U.S. troops stormed the compound where she was being held hostage.

It was initially thought she died when her captors blew-up a suicide vest.

But today Prime Minister David Cameron said a review of the Navy SEALs' rescue operation had uncovered a new 'deeply distressing development' suggesting a grenade detonated by taskforce members may have been to blame.

If you must have an investigation, make it quick and let these heroes move on. God bless Linda Norgrove and God bless our Military.

Prime Minister David Cameron on Death of Linda Norgrove (video)

Posted by Maggie@Maggie's Notebook

Jarod Newlove 2nd Navy Sailor Found Dead in Afghanistan

If you've been following the story of the two Navy sailors missing in Afghanistan, sad news today that a second body has been found, that of Petty Officer 3rd Class Jarod Newlove.

Petty Officer 2nd Class Jarod Newlove

The two men are believed to have driven into a hostile area after visiting a local market in Logar. The Taliban said one man was dead, and Petty Officer 2nd Class Justin McNeley's body was found this week. McNeley was from Wheatridge, Colorado, 30-years-old and the father of two small children.

It was believed Newlove was captured and held by the terrorists for a prisoner exchange. More as details become available.

Missing US Navy: One Dead One Captured by Taliban

Sad news this morning. An Afghan official says one of the two missing US Navy members is dead and the other held captive by the Taliban. The terrorist organization is offering to exchange the body of the dead American and the captive for the release of imprisoned insurgents in US custody. Ongoing updates as available. See an important update below.

Missing U.S. Navy in Afghanistan

US Army ABC is reporting:

...the two men ignored warnings and set out on their own from the base into a known Taliban-held area, and after an exchange of gunfire the two were captured.

 The CSMonitor says the two men were seen in their armed Toyota Land Cruiser. There are reports that the local police tried to flag them down before they got to the insurgents area. Taliban saw the men in the market, watched them drive toward danger and "warned fellow militants down the road to prepare an ambush."

 The graphics above are the leaflets distributed by the U.S. Military to Afghan civilians as they searched for the missing US Navy men. More when available.

Update 7-27-10
The remains of one of the sailors has been found in Eastern Afghanistan. The search is still on for the second missing man.

Marcus Luttrell Navy SEAL Team 10 Tells His Story of Operation Redwing Video

I know you have heard of Marcus Luttrell, the former Navy SEAL member of Team 10. He is speaking at a gun show in 2008 in this video. Team 10's assigned mission was to capture or kill a high-ranking Taliban leader, thought to be close to Osama bin Laden. Marcus was critically wounded several times and was the only SEAL to make it out alive. He was badly wounded and after the wounding, there was no medivac helicopter to swoop in and take him out. In fact, the rescue helicopter called in by one of the men was shot down by an RPG while attempting the rescue. Sixteen men aboard died. See a video below.

Marcus Luttrell and DASY

From the WashingtonPost:

It is a tale of moral choices and of prejudices transcended. It is also a reminder of how challenging it is to be a smart soldier, and how hard it is to be a good man.

Marcus tells the story, and nothing I can say here would even come close, except one thing, which had no yet happened when he gave this speech. When Marcus arrived back home, he brought with him a yellow Labrador puppy, named DASY. She was given to him to help him through his rehabilitation. In 2009, four teenagers came to Luttrell's home and killed DASY with a .357 Magnum at about 1 a.m. in the morning. Read what happened here.

Each letter in DASY's name stood for a team member killed in the operation known as Operation Red Wing: D for Danny Deitz, A for Matthew "Axe"Axelson, S for Southern boy (Marcus) and Y for Michael "Yankee" Murphy.

The target of Team 10's mission survived Operation Redwing. In an interview, he said a trap was set for the Americans. This quote is attributed to him:

We certainly know that when the American army comes under pressure and they get hit, they will try to help their friends. It is the law of the battlefield."

Three years later, the target known as "Shah" died in a firefight with Pakistani police.

Operation Redwing began on June 28, 2005, almost five years ago. Luttrell is the author of Lone Survivor. Your heart will swell as you listen to this brave American hero, and hear the story of his Team 10 members.







Marcus Luttrell, Navy Seal (video)
Other Reading:Thoughts on Marcus Luttrell and Touch Choices at NavySeals.com

Ray Mabus USS John Murtha: Ray Mabus Chooses John Murtha for Warship Namesake

Well, this is certainly a development. What a reprehensible event it is that now puts our sailors serving aboard a warship named after deceased Rep. John Murtha (D-PA).

USS John Murtha

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus is responsible for choosing Murtha's name to grace a mighty defender of America. Does Mabus know anything about what is going on the real world? Obviously not, because if some pressure was being applied by some influential person...like...maybe Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi or President Barack Obama, Mabus apparently had a very convenient out, according to this: previous San Antonio class ships have been named for American cities -but didn't take it.

For those of you reminding me that Murtha is a decorated Vietnam Marine...let me save you the trouble.  I appreciate his service then. I don't appreciate his service in the House. What we once were, doesn't mean we die that way. Between Vietnam and today, a person can do a boatload of damage. (let us just sweep Murtha's various ethics violations under the rug of journalism).

After 19 terms in The People's House, without proof, Murtha told TIME magazine:

 "It's much worse than reported. There was no fire fight. There was no IED that killed thse innocent people. Our troops overreacted because of the pressure on them and they killed innocent civilians in cold blood. And that's what the report is going to tell."

 TIME claimed they had seen video taken by Human Rights Watch at the scene. That was not true. They issued a correction and then claimed the video came from Hammurabi and a
Haditha journalism student," working with Human Rights Watch. TIME also "regretted" reporting the specific content of a photograph that apparently didn't exist. Sweetness and Light has the story.

Murtha's accusations were a Liberal battlecry. We didn't hear any Democrat come out and savage Murtha for providing aid and comfort to Islamic terrorists and their sympathizers everywhere, and leaving a wake of destruction to swamp the lives of 8 Marines and all who loved them and cared for them.

Here's the message from the U.S. Marine Corp to the Congressman:

Graphic credit: DequalsS.com

Eight Marines were charged. Six have had charges dropped and a seventh was acquitted. Hopefully, the same will happen for the eighth.

In the first video you will hear Murtha claim a Marine commandant told him personally that murder was being covered up. When Charlie Gibson asked him specifically about the commandant claiming murder, Murtha walked it back a bit, but got angrier by the second. He tells Gibson not to make excuses for the Military. Of the guilt of the as-yet-uncharged Marines, Murtha said there is "no doubt in my mind."

The USS John Murtha is "designed to support embarking, transporting, and landing elements of a Marine landing force in an assault by helicopters, landing craft, amphibious vehicles, and by a combination of these methods to conduct primary amphibious warfare mission."

Congressman John Murtha left this world at age 77 in February 2010 due to gall bladder surgery complications.



Charles Gibson and John Murtha: Haditha Marines (video)   John Murtha: ...and they killed innocent citizens in cold blood (video)

Hank Johnson: Guam Tip Over and Capsize Video

In the video below, Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA-4th) a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, questions  Admiral Robert F. Williard, the commander of the U.S. Pacific fleet. Watch the Admiral's face as he responds to Mr. Johnson "My fear is that the whole island will become so overly populated that it will tip over and capsize."

Hank Johnson

Happening in a House Armed Services Committee meeting, the Admiral responds:

We don't anticipate that. The Guam population, I think, currently about 175,000, and again, with 8,000 marines and their families, it's an addition of about 25,000 more into the population. 

Both Johnson and his office staff says his comment was "a metaphor."

Admiral Johnson is obviously a conservative. A Democrat would have burst out laughing and humiliated the man.

Lest you think someone dallied with the tape, the Atlanta Journal Constitution Political Insider offers a link to watch the entire feed directly from the House Armed Services Committee website.

Another Black Conservative provides insight on an ailment Rep. Johnson is dealing with.

Via The Lonely Conservative



Rep. Hank Johnson fears Guam might "tip over and capsize" (video

Gen. James Conway: Heterosexual Homosexual Marines Will Not Room Together

General James Conway says no matter what happens to military policy, he will do everything possible to keep heterosexual Marines from rooming with homosexual Marines.

General James Conway

In an article on Military.com, Gen. Conway said the policy means "we have to build BEQ's [bachelor enlisted quarters] and have single rooms.

The Stars and Stripes published a letter by Army Lt. Gen. Benjamin Mixon asking military and civilians to write their Congressmen and urge them oppose repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy. Mixon received a reprimand from Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, and Admiral Mike Mullen said Mixon should considering resigning over his statement. This is a portion of Gen. Mixon's letter:

If those of us who are in favor of retaining the current policy do not speak up, there is no chance to retain the current policy...

Also on March 25, Pentagon chief Robert Gates announced new guidelines intended to make it more difficult to boot someone from the service under DADT, including elevating the grade of officers able to separate gay servicemembers to flag and general officers only. Previously, O-6s could separate members determined to have committed homosexual conduct, according to a Defense Department statement.

From Gen. Conway:

In this case, I would want to reserve the right of a Marine that thinks he or she wouldn't want to [share a room with a homosexual]. And again that's the overwhelming...number of people that say that they wouldn't like to do so.

In a Senate hearing, Gen. John Sheehan, a former senior Marine officer and Nato commander blamed "open homosexuality" in the Dutch Army for the failure to prevent the Srebrenica massacre in 1995. At the end of the cold war, the General said, there was:

...a focus on peacekeeping operation because they did not believe the Germans were going to attack again or the Soviets were coming back

The case in point that I'm referring to is when the Dutch were required to defend Srebrenica against the Serbs, he said, referrring to the UN peacekeeping force deployed to protect Bosnian Muslim civilians.

The battalion was understrength, poorly led, and the Serbs came into town, handcuffed the soldiers to the telephone poles, marched the Muslims off and executed them.

Senator Carl Levin, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee asked Gen. Sheehan if the Dutch leaders told him the failure to defend was because there were gay soldiers there? Sheehan said "yes," "they included that as part of the problem.

Levin as much as called the General a liar. The Dutch defense minister said Sheehan's claims were "complete nonsense."

Haiti Earthquake Cost to US Staggering: USNS Comfort Costs $9200 Each Haiti Patient

The cost of the Haiti earthquake to the U.S. and to citizens has been staggering. The U.S. Navy hospital ship, USNS Comfort, arrived in Haiti on January 16th to treat those injured in the devastating Haiti earthquake of January 12th. Using a minimum of 2 million gallons of fuel, the ship treated fewer than 1,000 people, bringing the cost of treatment per patient to a minimum of $9,184 - for fuel only. Actual treatment costs have not been determined. In the video below, you will hear that the Comfort expected to treat 500 patients per day. Instead, the ship was innundated with patients suffering from ailments unrelated to the earthquake.

USNS Comfort

Strong message to U.S. politicians. Stop sending our money to underdeveloped countries in an attempt to feed the people. Let other countries do that. Put our aid into infrastructre and agriculture. Send Americans there to build it and see it through to the end. Start using our money to actually make a difference in people's lives beyond the dinner hour. Someone will feed the people for today. We can give them the opportunity to feed themselves forever.

In seven weeks, the Comfort treated only 871 patients; 843 were surgical procedures, on a ship capable of treating 500 daily:

The Baltimore Sun reported:

“You can’t expect the Comfort to bring the entire country up to the standards of the U.S. health care system, but there has to be some bailout capacity,” Pollak said.

Military physicians say privately that the Haiti relief mission was complicated by the endless need for advanced care for patients whose conditions were unrelated to the Jan. 12 disaster.

In Haiti primarily to treat fractures and crush injuries from the earthquake, the crew was inundated with patients suffering from diseases, heart trouble, infections and other ailments that owed more to the country’s lack of development than to the earthquake.

The Comfort left Haiti this week. Since January 12th, the U.S. has donated $712.7 million in aid, far more than any other country, and President Obama pledged more this week when Haiti's President, Rene Preval visited the White House.

USNS Comfort Haiti Mission (video)

Obama Iran Diplomacy Fails: Missiles and Warships to Persian Gulf: Patriot Missiles to Qatar UAE Bahrain Kuwait

Confirmed: Obama diplomacy with Iran failed. Time to do something. In an overt attempt to tamp down Israel, President Obama has ordered Patriot missiles to Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Kuwit. Two warships will stay in the Persian Gulf capable of shooting down Iranian missiles - and the US is helping Saudi Arabia develop ways to protect their oil installations.

From The Guardian:

Washington has not formally announced the deployment of the Patriots and other anti-missile systems, but by leaking it to American newspapers the administration is evidently seeking to alert Tehran to a hardening of its position....

An unnamed senior administration official told the New York Times: "Our first goal is to deter the Iranians. A second is to reassure the Arab states, so they don't feel they have to go nuclear themselves. But there is certainly an element of calming the Israelis as well."

Petraeus said the US is keeping cruisers equipped with advanced anti-missile systems in the Gulf at all times to act as a buffer between Iran and the Gulf states.

The Democrat administration didn't do this by themselves:

Pro-Israel lobby groups in the US have joined Republican party leaders in trying to build public pressure on the administration to take a tougher line with Iran. One group, the Israel Project, has been running a TV campaign warning that Iran might supply nuclear weapons to terrorists.

Imagine Washington DC under missile attack from nearby Baltimore," it says. "A nuclear Iran is a threat to peace, emboldens extremists, and could give nuclear materials to terrorists with the ability to strike anywhere....

The move is a continuation of the military build-up begun under former president George W Bush. In the past two years, Abu Dhabi has bought $17bn (£11bn) worth of weapons from the US, including the Patriot anti-missile batteries and an advanced anti-missile system. UAE recently bought 80 US-made fighter jets. It is also buying fighters from France.

Petraeus said in a speech in Bahrain last year the UAE air force "could take out the entire Iranian air force, I believe".

 Read more about failed diplomacy:
Obama Repeats Mistakes in Afghanistan: Purposeless Engagement

Related and Background:
Iran to Deliver Blow to Global Powers on February 11th

Persecuted Navy Seals: Support Persecuted Navy Seals Video

The persecuted Navy SEALS...persecuted by our own military, need your help. Support the persecuted Navy SEALS today. See after the video for information on each of the three individual SEALS. See update 12-07-09 below. See update 4-22-10 below.

Navy Seals

Update 12-07-09:

Ways you Can Help:

Lodge your protest at 813-828-4976
Email your protest to holly.silkman@soccent.centcom.mil

Mail your protest to US Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps
The office of the Judge Advocate General, Public Affairs
1322 Patterson Ave., Suite 3000
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5066

Other phone numbers:

Comm: 202-685-5493
Washington Navy Yard: 202-685-5190
Pentagon, Room 4C642: 703-614-7420

AJAG, Military Law: 1254 Charles Morris St., SE
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5047
Comm: 202-685-7053

This from a reader for donations to a defense fund:

"U.S.NavySEAL/Warrior Legal Defense Fund" acct. # 435020290711 c/o Bank of America, P.O. Box F, Fort Eustis, VA. 23604
Can contribute through any Bank of America. 

Also, paypal: http://sites.Google. com/site/usnavyseallegaldefencefund/

Not 501(c)(3), so not tax deductible

Support Persecuted Navy Seals


Thanks to The Jawa Report

Related and Background:

Jonathan Keefe is Navy SEAL charged in punching a terrorist incident

Matthew McCabe is Navy SEAL charged for punching terrorist

Julio Huertas is Navy Seal charged in Punching a Terrorist Incident - NOT GUILTY 4-22-10

Julio Huertas is Navy Seal charged in Punching a Terrorist Incident

Julio Huertas is one of three Navy SEALS charged in the "punching a Fallujah, Iraq terrorist" incidence. Update 12-07-09 below. Update 4-22-10: Petty Officer 1st Class Julio Huertas has been found NOT GUILTY! God bless the two remaining sailors still facing trial.

Navy Seals

Huertas is 28-years-old. He enlisted in 1999 and has served in "secial warfare units since 2002. He has an Iraq Campaign Medal and was advanced to the SEALs in June 2006. He is originally from Blue Island, Illinois. Huertas is charged with offenses occurring around September 1st, of one count each of dereliction of duty and false official statement and impeding an investigation.

Update 12-07-09:

Ways you Can Help:

Lodge your protest at 813-828-4976
Email your protest to holly.silkman@soccent.centcom.mil

Mail your protest to US Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps
The office of the Judge Advocate General, Public Affairs
1322 Patterson Ave., Suite 3000
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5066

Other phone numbers:

Comm: 202-685-5493
Washington Navy Yard: 202-685-5190
Pentagon, Room 4C642: 703-614-7420

AJAG, Military Law: 1254 Charles Morris St., SE
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5047
Comm: 202-685-7053

This from a reader for donations to a defense fund:

"U.S.NavySEAL/Warrior Legal Defense Fund" acct. # 435020290711 c/o Bank of America, P.O. Box F, Fort Eustis, VA. 23604
Can contribute through any Bank of America. 

Also, paypal: http://sites.Google. com/site/usnavyseallegaldefencefund/

Not 501(c)(3), so not tax deductible

Ahmed Hashim Abed, known to the military as Obejctive Amber, is believed to have orchestrated the brutal attack on four Blackwater contractors delivering catering supplies to our military in Fallujah, Iraq. He was one of the most wanted insurgents in in Iraq before three Navy Seals, deployed in an elite commando unit, captured him.

Blackwater Hangings

The source said intelligence briefings provided to the SEALs stated that "Objective Amber" planned the 2004 Fallujah ambush, and "they had been tracking this guy for some time."

The Fallujah atrocity came to symbolize the brutality of the enemy in Iraq and the degree to which a homegrown insurgency was extending its grip over Iraq.

The four Blackwater agents were transporting supplies for a catering company when they were ambushed and killed by gunfire and grenades. Insurgents burned the bodies and dragged them through the city. They hanged two of the bodies on a bridge over the Euphrates River for the world press to photograph [see above in an AP photo].

One of the Blackwater contractors murder was a former Navy SEAL.

According CNN, the three SEALS refused a "nonjudicial resolution," to the charges, saying they wanted their names cleared and they did not harm the detainee in anyway. Their charges are said to equvalent to a "misdemeanor,: yet:

If found guilty, they could be sentenced to a maximum of a year in a military prison, demotion to the lowest Navy rank, a cut in pay and a bad conduct discharge.

But if found innocent of all charges, they would be able to continue their careers with no record of the case in their personnel files.

The three SEALs are with their unit in Norfolk, Virginia. They will make an initial appearance before a military judge on December 7. The court-martial is scheduled to begin in January.

The attorney said he expects the SEALs will not waive their constitutional right to confront the accuser in court, which could cause a logistical challenge. Abed is believed to be in a U.S. military detention center overseas, and it is unclear if the military would want him brought to the United States for the court-martial.

Certainly, there is no similarity to the the punishment brought by a civilian misdemeanor.

The men charged are assigned to SEAL Team 10, based in Little Creek, Virginia. Also charged are Petty Officer Jonathan Keefe, SO-2 and Petty Officer Julio Huertas, SO-1.

Related:
Jonathan Keefe is Navy SEAL charged in punching a terrorist incident

Matthew McCabe is Navy SEAL charged for punching terrorist

Jonathan Keefe is Navy Seal Charged in Punching a Terrorist Incident

Jonathan Keefe is one of three Navy SEALS charged in the "punching a Fallujah, Iraq terrorist" incidence. Update 12-07-09 below.

Navy Seals

Keefe is 25 years old. He enlisted in 2006 and began his SEAL training the same year. He is originally from Yorktown, Virginia. Keefe is charged with offenses occurring around September 1st, of one count each of dereliction of duty and false official statement.

Update 12-07-09:

Ways you Can Help:

Lodge your protest at 813-828-4976
Email your protest to holly.silkman@soccent.centcom.mil

Mail your protest to US Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps
The office of the Judge Advocate General, Public Affairs
1322 Patterson Ave., Suite 3000
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5066

Other phone numbers:

Comm: 202-685-5493
Washington Navy Yard: 202-685-5190
Pentagon, Room 4C642: 703-614-7420

AJAG, Military Law: 1254 Charles Morris St., SE
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5047
Comm: 202-685-7053

This from a reader for donations to a defense fund:

"U.S.NavySEAL/Warrior Legal Defense Fund" acct. # 435020290711 c/o Bank of America, P.O. Box F, Fort Eustis, VA. 23604
Can contribute through any Bank of America. 

Also, paypal: http://sites.Google. com/site/usnavyseallegaldefencefund/

Not 501(c)(3), so not tax deductible

Ahmed Hashim Abed, known to the military as Obejctive Amber, is believed to have orchestrated the brutal attack on four Blackwater contractors delivering catering supplies to our military in Fallujah, Iraq. He was one of the most wanted insurgents in in Iraq before three Navy Seals, deployed in an elite commando unit, captured him.

Blackwater Hangings

The source said intelligence briefings provided to the SEALs stated that "Objective Amber" planned the 2004 Fallujah ambush, and "they had been tracking this guy for some time."

The Fallujah atrocity came to symbolize the brutality of the enemy in Iraq and the degree to which a homegrown insurgency was extending its grip over Iraq.

The four Blackwater agents were transporting supplies for a catering company when they were ambushed and killed by gunfire and grenades. Insurgents burned the bodies and dragged them through the city. They hanged two of the bodies on a bridge over the Euphrates River for the world press to photograph [see above in an AP photo].

One of the Blackwater contractors murder was a former Navy SEAL.

According CNN, the three SEALS refused a "nonjudicial resolution," to the charges, saying they wanted their names cleared and they did not harm the detainee in anyway. Their charges are said to equvalent to a "misdemeanor,: yet:

If found guilty, they could be sentenced to a maximum of a year in a military prison, demotion to the lowest Navy rank, a cut in pay and a bad conduct discharge.

But if found innocent of all charges, they would be able to continue their careers with no record of the case in their personnel files.

The three SEALs are with their unit in Norfolk, Virginia. They will make an initial appearance before a military judge on December 7. The court-martial is scheduled to begin in January.

The attorney said he expects the SEALs will not waive their constitutional right to confront the accuser in court, which could cause a logistical challenge. Abed is believed to be in a U.S. military detention center overseas, and it is unclear if the military would want him brought to the United States for the court-martial.

Certainly, there is no similarity to the the punishment brought by a civilian misdemeanor.

The men charged are assigned to SEAL Team 10, based in Little Creek, Virginia. Petty Officer Jonathan Keefe, SO-2 and Petty Officer Julio Huertas, SO-1 faces the same charges as McCabe, of "dereliction of performance of duty and making a false official statement."

Related:
Julio Huertas is Navy SEAL charged in punching a terrorist incident

Matthew McCabe is Navy SEAL charged for punching terrorist 

Matthew McCabe is Navy Seal Charged for Punching Terrorist

Matthew McCabe is one of three Navy SEALs charged with punching a Fallujah, Iraq terrorist in the mouth and bloodying his lip, or "punching him in the gut" or both. Update 12-07-09 below.

McCabe is 24 years old. He enlisted in the Navy in 2003 and is originally from Perrysburg, Ohio. He is charged with offenses occuring around September 1st, of one count each of assault of the detainee, dereliction of duty, making a false official statement, and "willfully failing to safeguard a detainee." Update 12-07-09:

Ways you Can Help:

Lodge your protest at 813-828-4976
Email your protest to holly.silkman@soccent.centcom.mil

Mail your protest to US Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps
The office of the Judge Advocate General, Public Affairs
1322 Patterson Ave., Suite 3000
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5066

Other phone numbers:

Comm: 202-685-5493
Washington Navy Yard: 202-685-5190
Pentagon, Room 4C642: 703-614-7420

AJAG, Military Law: 1254 Charles Morris St., SE
Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5047
Comm: 202-685-7053

This from a reader for donations to a defense fund:

"U.S.NavySEAL/Warrior Legal Defense Fund" acct. # 435020290711 c/o Bank of America, P.O. Box F, Fort Eustis, VA. 23604
Can contribute through any Bank of America. Also, paypal: http://sites.Google. com/site/usnavyseallegaldefencefund/

Not 501(c)(3), so not tax deductible

Ahmed Hashim Abed, known to the military as Obejctive Amber, is believed to have orchestrated the brutal attack on four Blackwater contractors delivering catering supplies to our military in Fallujah, Iraq. He was one of the most wanted insurgents in in Iraq before three Navy Seals, deployed in an elite commando unit, captured him.

Blackwater Hangings

The source said intelligence briefings provided to the SEALs stated that "Objective Amber" planned the 2004 Fallujah ambush, and "they had been tracking this guy for some time."

The Fallujah atrocity came to symbolize the brutality of the enemy in Iraq and the degree to which a homegrown insurgency was extending its grip over Iraq.

The four Blackwater agents were transporting supplies for a catering company when they were ambushed and killed by gunfire and grenades. Insurgents burned the bodies and dragged them through the city. They hanged two of the bodies on a bridge over the Euphrates River for the world press to photograph [see above in an AP photo].

One of the Blackwater contractors murder was a former Navy SEAL.

According CNN, the three SEALS refused a "nonjudicial resolution," to the charges, saying they wanted their names cleared and they did not harm the detainee in anyway. Their charges are said to equvalent to a "misdemeanor,: yet:

If found guilty, they could be sentenced to a maximum of a year in a military prison, demotion to the lowest Navy rank, a cut in pay and a bad conduct discharge.

But if found innocent of all charges, they would be able to continue their careers with no record of the case in their personnel files.

The three SEALs are with their unit in Norfolk, Virginia. They will make an initial appearance before a military judge on December 7. The court-martial is scheduled to begin in January.

The attorney said he expects the SEALs will not waive their constitutional right to confront the accuser in court, which could cause a logistical challenge. Abed is believed to be in a U.S. military detention center overseas, and it is unclear if the military would want him brought to the United States for the court-martial.

Certainly, there is no similarity to the the punishment brought by a civilian misdemeanor.

The men charged are assigned to SEAL Team 10, based in Little Creek, Virginia. Also charged are Petty Officer Jonathan Keefe, SO-2 and Petty Officer Julio Huertas, SO-1.

 Update 12-07-09:

Neal Puckett, the attorney for Matthew McCabe appeared on FOXNews on November 28th. Some remarks and a video below:

Neil Puckett states that McCabe “has a completely clean record.  In fact, he was onto a sterling career as a SEAL, as were his other two SEALs.”  Puckett also wants to know “if the service is going to bring this terrorist to the courtroom in Norfolk so that we can have our 6th Amendment rights to confrontation of his accuser?”

 Neal Puckett - Matthew McCabe (video)

Related:

Julio Huertas is Navy SEAL charged in punching a terrorist incident

Jonathan Keefe is Navy SEAL charged in punching a terrorist incident

Beirut Lebanon Marine Barracks: Beirut Lebanon October 23, 1983 Where Terrorism Began?

What if American military had not pulled out of Lebanon after the bombing of the Marine barracks on October 23, 1983?

Beirut Lebanon Marine Barracks Bombing

Would the Khobar Towers bombings in Saudia Arabia on June 25, 1996 have occurred? The explosives used to kill 19 of our troops are believed to have come from Lebanon. The blast took down 6 high rise buildings. A crater 85' wide and 35' deep was left behind.

Would the bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen on October 12th, 2000 been possible? Seventeen Sailors were killed, many wounded.

Would September 11, 2001 have happened?

In "the largest non-nuclear explosion on the planet" we lost 241 Marines, Sailors and Soldiers on October 23, 1983.

Listen to former U.S. Military who survived the blast, and their thoughts about terrorism, in the video below.

Thanks to Always on Watch, Creeping Sharia  and The Beirut Veterans Blog.










 Beirut Lebanon Where Terrorism Began? (video)

Scott Speicher Found: Michael Scott Speicher Found in Iraq

The body of Naval Captain Michael Scott Speicher has been found in Iraq after an 18-year-search. See 8-13-09 update below:

Michael Scott Speicher

The remains of Captain Speicher were found just days ago in the Anbar Province of Iraq. They have been positively identified as Michael Scott Speicher, who was shot down in his FA-18 Hornet over the the Iraqi desert on the first night of the Persian Gulf War, January 17, 1991. For 18 years his whereabouts were unknown. Scott, who was 33 years old at the time his plane went down, left behind his wife Joanne, a 3-year-old daughter and 1 year old son; his parents and two siblings now college-students, who were toddlers at the time of his death. The family was notified Saturday that their loved one would finally come home. Captain Speicher considered Orange Park, FL home. The Navy's search for Mr. Speicher in Iraq has been unending. Immediately after his plane was reported down, the Pentagon announced the first casualty of the war. Ten years passed with no positive evidence of a death, and officials changed Speicher's status to "missing in action." Once the Iraq war started and we had a U.S. presence in the country, the search was stepped up. In October 2002, the Navy again changed the status to "missing/captured." Yet another review of the case was made in 2008. Navy Secretary Donald Winter made the decision to continue with the "Missing" status, even though there was "compelling evidence" that the pilot did not survive the desert crash. Following the fall of Baghdad, rumors circulated that Speicher may be alive and held prisoner. Iraqi citizens have been an important part of the search through the years, and finally the chain of locals led the U.S. Marines to Captain Speicher.

Officials said Sunday that they got new information from an Iraqi citizen in early July, leading Marines stationed in Anbar province to a location in the desert which was believed to be the crash site of Speicher's jet.
The Iraqi said he knew of two other Iraqis who recalled an American jet crashing and the remains of the pilot being buried in the desert.
"One of these Iraqi citizens stated that they were present when Captain Speicher was found dead at the crash site by Bedouins and his remains buried," the Pentagon said in a statement.

In 2003, the search for Scott Speicher became national news again when the initials "MSS" were found etched into a prison wall in Baghdad, and "Iraqi defectors" claimed sightings of Speicher alive. A U.S. Army camp in Iraq is named in honor of Captain Speicher, who was promoted to Captain after his plane went down. Camp Speicher is a "Contingency Operating Base," located near Tikrit in northern Iraq, about 105 miles north of Baghdad. The 42nd Infantry Division and the 101st Airbone have been based at Camp Speicher, along with the headquarters of the Multi-National Division, North during Operation Iraqi Freedom. During the reign of Saddam Hussein, the location was known as Al Sahra Airfield. Joanne Speicher married Scott's best friend, Buddy Harris, 18 months after the death of her husband. Harris was also a Naval pilot and continued to be active in the search for his close friend. They have two children in addition to Scott's daughter and son. Mr. Harris remained active in the search. Here's the rest of the story:

Harris, who married Speicher’s widow only to be told that he might not be dead after all, says he has hoped all along that his friend would return home safely, whatever the impact on his family.

“We will throw a huge welcome home party,” he said. “Then we will deal with whatever comes next in an adult and private manner.”

Harris, 44, added: “I want to be able to look him in the eye and say, ‘This is what I did, this is why I did it’. And I can’t imagine him being displeased.”

When Speicher’s aircraft vanished he left behind Joanne, his college sweetheart, Megan, three, and one-year-old Michael.

“I knew Joanne before she and Scott got married,” Harris said. “She was like a sister. We had a lot of fun together. We were all pretty close. Scott was the leader of his class, a fun-loving, nice guy, always with a smile on his face. We had that connection between us.”

Speicher became a national hero when, in May 1991, a memorial stone was erected in Arlington national cemetery in Washington.

It was less than a year after marrying Joanne that Harris, who was working at the Pentagon, heard that wreckage from the jet had been found intact. He decided to keep the news from his wife, uncertain how it would affect their marriage.

The Pentagon considered mounting a special forces operation to rescue Speicher if he could be located. “I felt it was a mission we had to perform because we never leave one of our own out there without hope,” said Tim Connolly, assistant deputy secretary of special operations at the time.

American officials approached the International Committee of the Red Cross, which obtained permission to search the crash site. It found the cockpit canopy and a flight suit with the legs cut open. There were no signs of blood.

Harris knew he had to tell Joanne. “Up to that point, there was just no sense in making her more miserable over possibilities,” he said.

She took it well, he explained, but added: “It wasn’t a happy environment for a while. I mean, you can just imagine trying to give that kind of information to your wife.” Friends of Joanne say she has dealt with the news of her husband by “putting it all into a compartment that she refuses to open." “She has moved on and at times says she doesn’t want to look back,” said a close friend. “It makes her sound uncaring and she’s not but she’s had to move on with her life.” Harris, on the other hand, remains preoccupied with the search. “I gotta find out the truth,” he said. “This is important, the most important thing in my life."

Read the Arlington National Cemetery Website Update 8-14-09: The remains of Captain Michael "Scott" Speicher returned home to Florida today - 18 years after being the first U.S. military to be shot down over Iraq. Buddy Harris, Speicher's close friend, and now the husband of his widow Joanne, accompanied the casket from Dover, DE to Florida.

This is the ultimate definition of bittersweet. We got Scott home and that was the ultimate goal," Harris said outside the base chapel as mourners slowly passed by the casket.

Captain Speicher was a native of Kansas City. He will be interred at Jacksonville Memory Gardens in private services.