RSSWish I had read this in a Newspaper
But I am damn glad guys like BlackFive are out there. He has an outstanding site, dedicated to the military.
He as a post today that tells the story of 18 brave Americans who died in a helicopter accident in Afghanistan. Not by talking about the mission they were on, but just by giving a brief biography and what they did for their country.
Here is an excerpt. Read the rest.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 David Ayala, 24, was born in South Carolina and enlisted in the Army after graduating from high school. He married his wife, Athena, while attending flight school at Fort Rucker, Ala., in 2002. Ayala served in Kosovo and Afghanistan, logging 50 hours of combat time in one month. Awards include the Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal and the Bronze Star, which was awarded posthumously.
Maj. Craig Wilhelm, Ayala’s company commander, praised his “ability to make sure we always kept things in the proper perspective.” Chief Warrant Officer 2 Ed Maynard attended flight school with Ayala and recalled his friend’s love of wine and cooking and desire to find “just the right house” for his wife to live in.
…
Romanes L. Woodard, 30, an Army staff sergeant from Hertford, N.C., was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 508th Infantry Regiment. Kilbride called Woodard “a dedicated father and quiet professional.” McGuire said he was a key member of his maintenance platoon, adding, “We could not have deployed as a combat ready force” without him.
There are 16 more like that. You see for yourself, and while you are at Blackfive’s site, tell him thanks.
Wouldn’t it be nice if the Newspapers did stories like this? Not a piece on a soldier who died, and having it recounted as negatively as possible. But a positive spin on what they did and what they lost in service to our country. I may still have a newspaper subscription if that were the case.
From The London Sun….NAZI?
The London Sun has really done it this time.
London Tabloids deserve their reprehensible reputation.
Hat Tip The Corner
LA Times Reporter Fired for Inaccurate Reporting
Patterico has a story on the firing of a LA Times reporter, Eric Slater, who had gross inaccuracies in a story he filed over a hazing death at Chico State.
Here is the Editors Note:
On March 31, The Times published a correction of four errors in a March 29 article about controversies arising from fraternity hazing at Cal State Chico. At the same time, editors began a full review of the story, which was published on the front page of the California section. Based on that inquiry, which included a visit to Chico by a Times editor, the paper has concluded that the article fell far short of Times standards.
Beyond the specific errors, the newspaper’s inquiry found that the methods used in reporting the story were substandard. The quotations from anonymous sources and from two named sources, a Mike Rodriguez and a Paul Greene, could not be verified.
Additional inaccuracies found during the investigation include the following:
In describing a hazing death this year, the article said that the victim died after drinking five gallons of water from a “rubber bladder bag.” The Butte County district attorney reported that the amount of water exceeded five gallons and that it came from a plastic jug, not a bladder bag.
The story also reported that the victim was alone at the time of his death. The D.A. reported that this was not the case.
The article attributed to “medical examiners” the idea that the victim may have experienced a moment of euphoria shortly before his death. That belief has been expressed by the victim’s father, who told the Chico Enterprise Record that he based it on his own research. Butte County’s district attorney said it does not appear in any medical reports related to the current case.
The article said that the parents of Adrian Heideman, a hazing victim who died in 2000, showed their son’s day planner to hazing expert Hank Nuwer. Nuwer informed The Times’ readers’ representative that he was not shown Heideman’s day planner by his parents; he heard it described by Heideman’s father over the phone.
Separate from the March 29 article, a review of an earlier story on the same subject revealed another error. On March 5, The Times reported that eight fraternity members had been charged with involuntary manslaughter. In fact, eight were charged with hazing, and four of them were also charged with involuntary manslaughter.
The writer of both articles, Eric Slater, has been dismissed from the staff.
Another example of todays Media. We will keep track of the story as it continues.
American Roy Hallums wife is interviewed at My Pet Jawa
Rusty has done an excellent job with this. Go over and read the whole thing.
Here is an excerpt.
The Damned of the West (part 1): Interview With Susan Hallums
American Roy Hallums was abducted from his temporary Baghdad home on November 1st, 2004. He was in Iraq as a civilian contractor working on rebuilding efforts. His mission had everything to do with helping the Iraqi people rebuild their country after decades of war, mismanagement, and terror under the Saddam Hussein regime.
Roy was taken hostage along with six other foreign nationals, including a Fillipino named Robert Tarongoy. The U.S. did not publish the fact that an American citizen had been taken hostage because of a policy of treating civilian abductions as purely private matters. The Jawa Report was the first publication to identify Roy Hallums as the hostage.
Since that time we have been in contact with members of the Hallums family who started leaving comments at our site. One of Roy’s daughters, Carrie Hallums Cooper, and his ex-wife, Susan Hallums, have been leading the charge to keep Roy’s plight in the media.
…
Rusty Shackleford: Can you tell our readers a little something about the kind of man Roy is?
Susan Hallums: Roy is the kind of person that is always well liked by most everyone that is fortunate enough to meet him. He is a very kind and caring man. He has always been a great father and grandfather to our daughters and granddaughter.
Pope Benedict, will the liberals respect him?
The liberal reaction in the United States has been visceral .
Since it is the way of the left to disrespect the institution of anyone they disagree with, I have a bet for you.
I bet the liberals will forever call Pope Benedict XVI not by his holy name, but instead they will call him Pope Ratz.
Anyone gonna take me up on it?
The Anchoress takes this concept and really runs with it.
