Freedom ain't free!

[Rparker28]

All- Just wanted to say Happy 4th of July to you and to remind everyone that FREEDOM AINT'T FREE and it absolutely comes with a cost. I know that may not be proper English but it is for me since I am from the south. The freedoms that we enjoy today are from the sacrifices of the men and women who have served and are serving RIGHT now. I thank each and everyone of them that I can live in a land that has the freedoms and liberties that we do. For those on this forum that have served I thank you RIGHT now for your service! My uncle Gene was in Vietnam and I remember Granny telling us kids that we needed to send him a letter letting him know that we loved and missed him. I thought the air mail envelopes were cool. The helicopter pilot told my uncle that he would have left him on the battle field after my uncle had been shot but the pilot saw him move and so they stayed just long enough to get him on the chopper and to the medics. My uncle survived but did not come back from Vietnam the way he left. He suffered a toll greater than death as he never was the same. I love and miss him and I appreciate him for what he did for me and you. I had the honor of preaching his funeral and his memory lives on today. Remember that FREEDOM IS NOT FREE! Ralph

[Terry, NJ]

My uncle Ralph came back from Europe pretty much a psychologicaly broken man. He couldn't hold a job and just lived in his little room and smoked his little cigarillo and pipe. He was tighter than a watch. Some times he would try to light his pipe and just shake. He was in something called "Com Z" or Communications zone and had been a lineman. He moved up with the front lines and ran the telephone lies back to headquarters. I liked him, but there really wasn't much there to like. Uncle Ralph was a diminished personalty. He just lay there by the hour, listening to his classical music and smoking. He died in 1968, from a heart attack, at age 53, in a family where every one else made it to their 80s
Curiously, I lived in that same house in 1974 and we used to come home at night and smell cigar smoke and no one in the house smoked. Not often, but a few times. Make of it what you will. but this actually happened.
Terry

[V4F]

never has been free ! aint no free lunch !

[fixitphil]

You guys are making me tear up.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

[fixitphil]

My granddaughter is a new recruit in the USArmy, son is a F18 pilot in the Navy and I'm an old time vet of Air Force.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk

[TRP]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

The 4th is my favorite holiday. Hands down. People need to take a minute to remember that many generations have lost sons and daughters so they can be free.

God bless the U.S.A.

Ted

[jimalabam]

To ALL Veterans, I salute you and Thank YOU for your service, Colonel USAF Retired, James R. Langley...

[stewwolfe]

Happy Independence Day to all and THANK YOU to all Veterans, especially my son Eric who is 100% DAV due to service in Afghanistan.

Stew
USN Retired

[Kevin in NJ]

Sadly, most of the recent casualities are from events not related to keeping us or anyone more free.

My cousin flew ch46's during the recent conflicts and I have heard the stories. All the more reason to hug a vet and thank them.

[Gary WA]

Wishing All A Great Independence Day!! USN Ret Seabees "Can Do" 1969-1991

[davehc]

Agree with all said above , and would like everyone to have a SAFE 4 th.

[Growley bear]

Many of us didn't come back in the same condition as we left. However, I would not hesitate to do it again.
What I think is sad is that less than 1/2 of 1% of our citizens are serving.
Chet Clymer
G Troop
2/11 ACR
Black Horse

[cradlescyth]

Thanks Guys and GOD Bless AMERICA

Happy and Safe 4th

[Railcarmover]

Originally Posted by Gary WA

Wishing All A Great Independence Day!! USN Ret Seabees "Can Do" 1969-1991

CM2 '77-'82 NMCB40...forty years later and still hanging on a wrench..

[Redbird]

SALUTE!!!

John USAF 66-70

[chap52]

God Bless America and all who are now or in the past have served.

Richard ABH3 ('63-"67) USS Constellation '65-'67

[divcoone]

Those that never put their life on hold or their life on the line will never understand the cost of freedom.

[31 Model A]

Memorial Day, Independence Day and Veterans Day always have been the three holidays I actually, whenever possible, sit back and reflect.

[H. L. Chauvin]

For the saying, Freedom Ain't Free.

And, from history ...... how long will this one last?

I would guess that for many years, July 4th was a Holiday designated for celebrating our ancestors' sacrifices and gaining our country's most unique one-of-a-kind type of Freedom.

Later, appears July 4th incorporated honoring later sacrifices, and our later maintaining our country's most unique type of Freedom.

Tomorrow, when the Bar-B-Q fires are roasting and the can tops are popping, it would appear patriotic if we continue to celebrate our country's most unique one-of-a-kind Freedom ....................

and also maybe consider, what is it that we can do at present, to try to continue insuring that our U.S.A.'s treasured Freedom is headed in the right direction to maintain our most unique one-of-a-kind Freedom that came from the sacrifices of our most honorable patriotic ancestors.

[Synchro909]

These days, those who come back altered from the way they left are better diagnosed. Many would be diagnosed with PTSD and receive better treatment than those of yesteryear. That doesn't diminish what they have done - it's only them getting the help they deserve.
I believe that we all owe a thanks to our fighting men and women regardless of which allied country. We have benefited from the efforts of American forces and Americans have benefited from some of the actions of our people. That can be extended to all of the allied forces. For example, in WWI, no country lost more men on a per capita basis than Australia (and what did the war have to do with us????) When US forces entered Iraq, there was no sign of Sadam's Air Force, which was significant. Australian forces had taken it out before hand (without the loss of a single life or aircraft.). President Bush acknowledged that. On the flip side, our troop stopped the Japanese on land in New Guinea but the US Navy stopped them on the seas (Coral Sea). It's good to have allies!
Over here, we do not treat returned personnel the way you do in the US. We figure they were just doing the job they are paid to do, risky and all as it is.
That's a long winded way of saying that while July 4th is a special day in the US, let's not forget the sacrifices of other nations.

[ericr]

Originally Posted by Kevin in NJ

Sadly, most of the recent casualities are from events not related to keeping us or anyone more free.

My cousin flew ch46's during the recent conflicts and I have heard the stories. All the more reason to hug a vet and thank them.

I sure agree, the best thing we can do for our present armed forces is not involve them in haywire misadventures.

[captndan]

Don't throw rocks at our President to celebrate our freedom. Instead stand up and salute our flag and Veterans. Semper Fi!

[holdover]

It is not free, and there are memorials all over with their names on them, as has been said "All gave some, some gave all" remember If we never forget, they will always be with us.

USMC Vietnam '68-69

and to all those chopper guys who saved my butt, too many times to count.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqYOAqxlL_Y

[Duckfarmer27]

Originally Posted by Synchro909

That's a long winded way of saying that while July 4th is a special day in the US, let's not forget the sacrifices of other nations.

Synchro -

You are right - and I respect all those allies that I had the privilege of working with over the years.

My father in law served something like '14 years before the colors' as the Brits put it. He was Irish but served in the Gordon Highlanders - and he managed to survive from their first action in 1914 to the end of WWI. Emigrated to the US, became a citizen, married finally at 40 and then had 8 children, my wife being the youngest and only girl. All 7 of my brothers in law and I served - some of us during peacetime and some of us earning our pay the hard way. So in our way, the family itself was an allied endeavor. But then one of my ancestors died on the green at Lexington on 19 April 1775 - so we have seen the whole gamut of enemy to being as close as possible.

And any Aussie I ever worked with was great.

Enjoy this day of freedom. And in my case also my wedding anniversary.

Dale

[Benson]

On this Fourth of July ...

Special thanks to "The Man in the Doorway" ...

click below to read about "The Man in the Doorway":

From the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association website:
http://www.vhpa.org/stories/doorway.pdf


I arrived "In country" Jan 26th, 1968.

It was Jan 30th, "Oh Dark Thirty". The VC liked to start attacks in the confusion in middle of the 0200 changing of the guard.

The Tet Offensive was in full force and the Viet Cong were inside our perimeter wire and we were out of ammo.

That was when I first met "The Man in the doorway" when he kicked the boxes of 7.62 out the doorway.


We never had a chance to thank these folks or the Cobra and Huey gunships which spent the rest of the night and the next night overhead.

THe M-134 (6000 rounds a minute) is amazing to say the least!

I remember the deafening sound and the red light from the tracer rounds which lit up the ground and overwhelmed the parachute flares.

M-134s from 20 or 30 feet away sound like a 10,000 Cubic inch chainsaw at full throttle!

I remember shoveling thousands of 7.62 casings and the green clips from M-60 ammo belts into 55 gallon drums the next day. They were 6 inches deep in some places.

These kind of scenes happened somewhere in Vietnam every day and night during this time!!

[31 Model A]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Originally Posted by Duckfarmer27

Synchro -

You are right - and I respect all those allies that I had the privilege of working with over the years.

My father in law served something like '14 years before the colors' as the Brits put it. He was Irish but served in the Gordon Highlanders - and he managed to survive from their first action in 1914 to the end of WWI.

Dale

You brought back a memory I have of sitting one day with an ex-wife's granddad who was a WWI vet, 93rd Regt of Foot (Sutherland Highlanders). Some of the stories were like being there in person. One was when patrols were sent out and most all the regiment were Gallic speaking squaddies and knew no King's english, coming back into the lines, those on guard that didn't understand Gallic from German would fire on any fellow squaddies thinking they were Germans.

He said his kilt was quite warm but very heavy when soaked from rain and mud.
He was a tall gentleman and at one time quite a statue of a fellow, I'm sure.

[31 Model A]

Originally Posted by Synchro909

.
That's a long winded way of saying that while July 4th is a special day in the US, let's not forget the sacrifices of other nations.

I haven't, I knew and remember a few diggers while there........and all were appreciated for being there along side.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gmgwx77osw

[Terry, NJ]

One more story and I'll quit, seeing as how I didn't serve because of my back (Severe Scoliosis) In 1916, Pres. Wilson said "Our boys will never fight on foreign soil" to win the election. He won and They did! In April 1917 we declared and my great uncle Hermann enlisted. They made him a Machine gunner and put him at the front. A little back ground! My Great Grand father, Hermann Dietzold came to the USA and Hermann Jr was the oldest child. The average life of a machine gunner was 3 weeks. My uncle lasted till Nov 10th, 1918. Then a mortar shell came over and killed him and about twenty others. If only he could have stayed alive another 15 hours! His father, my Great Grandfather, lived to see his native land go to war against his adopted homeland twice in his life time.
Terry

[48fordnut]

Salute to all.

[Synchro909]

Originally Posted by Duckfarmer27

Synchro -

Enjoy this day of freedom. And in my case also my wedding anniversary.

Dale

So, you LOST your independence on the 4th July!!!!
Happy anniversary.

[Duckfarmer27]

Originally Posted by Synchro909

So, you LOST your independence on the 4th July!!!!

Yep, 47 years ago today. That was 4 weeks after she pinned my bars on - that gig only lasted 33 years 2 months and 9 days, but who was counting! I'm just glad this loss of independence is still going - she should have had a revolution a long time ago putting up with me.

Dale

[DougVieyra]

Shortly after the American colonist began their civil war against their English 'Mother Country", while the price of their struggle for independence was still fresh in their mind, A quote began to appear in print which was true then (the recent War of 1812 had just finished), and is just as true today:

"Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty" .

This had been often attributed to Thomas Jefferson (who know something about the struggle to keep liberty and freedom), but was more likely first coined by John Philpot Curran's statement in 1817. In any case, this one line piece of prose represents a true and factual reality that must never be forgotten.

[Benson]

Air Mobile .... Sir!!

[sjhark]

[QUOTE=Synchro909;1494278] When US forces entered Iraq, there was no sign of Sadam's Air Force, which was significant. Australian forces had taken it out before hand (without the loss of a single life or aircraft.). President Bush acknowledged that.

I have an interesting follow up to this. I was in Iraq from 2003-2004 in an Army National Guard transportation unit. We traveled all over the countries of Iraq and Kuwait. In our travels we often came across abandoned Iraqi fighter jets parked in tree groves, miles from any airstrips. In western Iraq, where it's more desert-type terrain, they found many, many fighters actually buried deep in the sand. The Iraqis still had an Air Force, but they had learned early on to hide it and never get caught in the air!
I found a couple pictures, but couldn't find the ones of the planes buried in the sand. I'll have to keep looking.