Check out "A Letter to the Grieving" by Newsweek, via MSNBC.

Karen Spears Zacharias, a writer and the daughter of one of Vietnam's fallen heroes, writes an open letter to the children who have lost parents in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Hi,
Joey's surgery went well on Friday. The doctor removed the metal plate and also cut the tendons loose in the little finger and straightened it. I talked with him yesterday, Saturday, and he was in a lot of pain. Keep praying about his knee. In the forward email is a web site that you can place in the address bar and see lots of pictures taken by a professional photographer name Logan. They are in black and white but are very clear. Also, TIME magazine called me today, Sunday, and said Joey will be in the issue coming out tomorrow. Sorry about the delay. Thanks for your love and support.
Love,
Gail, Joey and Jayme


You can see the pictures of Joey here.

Christina was inspired to write this poem after viewing an AP photo. You can see the photo here.

WOUNDED: THEN AND NOW
The younger,
somewhat stronger,
reaches out to the
elder

They stand there
clasped in each other's arms
understanding ~
undemanding

Although they'd never met
and their wars were
separated by 60 years

they reach out
in their desire to share
each other's tears......

Both are survivors
both are heroes

one, the Elder,
and one, the Younger

they are the same
in their need and hunger

Each one knows
the need to be understood,

to try to find the good
in what they have gone through;

One who was maimed on a ship
and one who bled into the sand,
meet, and hug, and shed some tears

each, in his own way,
lending a hand.

Christina 3-4-05

POSTAL DUTIES — U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. David A. Sadler helps unload one of 14 pallets of mail received at Camp Taqaddum, Iraq, March 9, 2005. Sadler, a postal clerk assigned to the 2nd Force Service Support Group (Forward), is one of 24 Marines who assumed postal responsibilities from 1st Force Service Support Group in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Kristin S. Jochums

Quote of the Day
"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem."
-- Ronald Reagan, 1985


JuneauEmpire.com: Associated Press
China enacts law to stop Taiwan secession
Israel vows to remove illegal settlements


Seattle Post-Intelligencer: War on Iraq
Bahrainis in Web site case reject bail
Officer: Syria pulls 1/3 of Lebanon troops
Kurds say they're nearing Iraq gov't deal
Annan discusses Mideast peace with Sharon


Ananova: War In Iraq
London is well down safety league
Army awaits report on treatment
Security tight for notes switch


The US News: Iraq News
Two Iraqi soldiers killed by time bomb north of Baghdad
Iraqis protest Jordanian's alleged role in Hilla bombing
11 Iraqis killed in attacks over past two days
Iraqi Politicians Still Negotiating to Form Government
'Democracy will fit the needs of every nation'
Saudi police kill suspected militant
UN questions Fiji over recruitment of security guards for Iraq >
Pakistan's antidote to extremism: first arts school
Sikh girl goes to Iraq war
Iraq's leading parties to form government
Spanish Muslims decry Al Qaeda


CNN.com
Thousands rally to mark death of Lebanon leader
China OKs force to stop Taiwan independence
Israel vows to dismantle outposts
2 U.S. Embassy security workers killed in Iraq


Fox News
Report: U.S. Aviation Still Vulnerable to Terror Attacks
Militants Quit Philippine Jail
Kurds, Shiites Meet in Iraq
China Passes Taiwan Attack Law Despite Foreign Appeals
Chechnya Office Attacked
Agents: Crackdown Has Hindered Al Qaeda
Reporter's Notebook: Path of Afghan Women
Afghan Baby Survives Surgery in U.S.
British Worker Murdered in Afghan Capital
Last Weapons Collected from Taliban Stronghold
Karzai Appoints Afghanistan's First Female Provincial Governor


Department of Defense
Myers Thanks Egyptians for Support — Story
Chairman Thanks Troops for Helping Cement Ties
Two American Contractors, One Soldier Killed — Story
Individual Services Breed Healthy Competition — Story
Iraq Still Has Much to Overcome After Elections – Story

ON THE GROUND
Concerns Addressed at Women's 'Shuras' — Story
Lejeune Marine Regiment Deploys to Iraq — Story

IN IRAQ
Iraqi Soldiers Learn Close-Quarters Combat
Marine Aviation Excels During River Blitz
Troops Help Iraqi Commandos to Communicate

IN AFGHANISTAN
Wolfhounds Complete Last Patrol of Tour
MP Unit Serves Operation Enduring Freedom


TOP NEWS
IN IRAQ
Year in Review 2004 Fact Sheets (pdf)
Iraq Daily Update
Iraq Reconstruction
Maps
Weekly Progress Report (pdf)

IN AFGHANISTAN
Afghan Army Receives New Vehicles
Marines Attacked in Afghanistan
Weapons Caches Recovered
Afghanistan Daily Update
Maps

WAR ON TERRORISM
Threats Require New Approach
Waging and Winning the War on Terror
Terrorism Timeline
Terrorism Knowledge Base

MILITARY NEWS
Terror War Transforms Military
National Guard, Reserve Update

CASUALTIES
Officials Identify Casualty — Story


Today in History
1590 - Battle of Ivry; decisive battle of the French religious wars.
1629 - The Massachusetts Bay Colony is granted a Royal charter.
1757 - British Admiral John Byng is executed by firing squad on board the HMS Monarch, for neglect of duty.
1812 - War Bonds go on sale.
1862 - Battle of New Bern, in North Carolina
1900 - U.S. currency goes on the gold standard.
1903 - The Hay-Herran Treaty is ratified in the Senate, guaranteeing the U. S. the right to build a canal in Panama.
1912 - In Rome, Antonio Dalba (an anarchist) fails in his assassination attempt on King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy.
1915 - The British Navy sinks the German battleship Dresden off Chile.
1918 - Soviets ratifies a peace treaty with the Central Powers.
1923 - President Warren G. Harding becomes the first U.S. President to file an income tax return.
1936 - Hitler tells a crowd of 300,000 that Germany's only judge is God and itself.
1939 - The Nazis dissolve the Czechosovakian Republic.
1943 - The Germans reoccupy Kharkov in the U.S.S.R.
1947 - The U.S. signs a 99-year lease on naval bases in the Philippines.
1951 - U.N. forces recapture Seoul - the second time during the Korean War.
1954 - The Viet Minh launch an attack on French Colonial Forces at Dien Bien Phu.
1964 - A Dallas jury finds Jack Ruby guilty of murdering Lee Harvey Oswald.
1965 - In Vietnam, Allies launch Rolling Thunder's second wave.
1967 - John F. Kennedy's body is moved from a temporary grave to a permanent one in Arlington.
1978 - An Israeli force of 22,000 invades south Lebanon, attacking PLO bases.
1990 - Mikhail S. Gorbachev becomes president of the Soviet Congress.
1991 - The "Birmingham Six," imprisoned for 16 years for an IRA pub bombing, are released when a court determines that police fabricated evidence.


Birthdays
1879 - Albert Einstein, German-born mathematician best known for his theories on relativity.
1934 - Eugene Cernan, American astronaut.