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Sunday, May 08, 2005




IN THE SPRING…
The small soldier hides
behind a boulder of rock
carrying small arms
careful not to talk;
lest his position be given away,
he hides, still as stone
but he doesn’t pray.
A small nurse is waiting
in a green plastic tent
in case the wee soldier’s wounded
his green body rent
with injuries inflicted
by other small men
He’s been fighting a long time
since summer, it’s been.
When it starts snowing
his General goes home
leaving him and the others
behind Boulders of stone
and the small soldier waits
and the nurse waits, as well
[All things are relative;
They’ve been through small Hell.]
The snowstorms creep over
their boulders and moss
they don’t feel the cold
and they don’t feel the loss
But they stay in position
and wait out the storm
and suddenly, one day
it starts to get warm.
The General is back!
He’s looking about
They wish they could speak
they'd like to call out
But they remain silent
and watchful, as always -
still, in position,
these many long days
……
for they are Toy Soldiers, and
and they were led by my son…
and he has long served
with his own pack and gun;

He has hidden near boulders,
that smoldered in heat,

or were smothered in snow……

just like his toy soldiers
from long, long ago.


©Copyright January 2004 by Christina

Updated on Mother's Day - 5-8-05

Heroes of the 143rd MPs

I posted some of Sgt. Esposito's pictures earlier in "Our Fighting Women." Here are a few more:



Sgt. Diana Esposito




George Magrey and Sgt. Esposito at Abu Ghraib



Sgt. Esposito and Sgt. Jeffrey Walsh on top of the Four Heads



Sgt. Esposito and members of her squad at Al Khadra Police Station, in Baghdad

In Today's News - Sunday, May 8, 2005

Quote of the Day
"I say that in the long years to come not only will the people of this island but of the world, wherever the bird of freedom chirps in human hearts, look back to what we've done and they will say 'do not despair, do not yield to violence and tyranny, march straightforward and die if need be-unconquered.'"
-- Winston Churchill, in a V-E Day Speech, May 8, 1944



News of Note:
Student Suspended:
School reduces suspension over Iraq call - after a flood of emails and phone calls.

Freedom Spreading:
Women activists in Kuwait demand rights - from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer

V-E Day:
Prince to lead VE Day commemoration - from Ananova
Honoring WWII Vets - from Fox News

War on Terror:
Zarqawi Compound Raid Nabs 54, Kills Six - from Fox News
Coalition Captures Zarqawi Associate - from the Department of Defense
Terrorist Leadership Diminishing in Iraq - from the Department of Defense
Zarqawi Loses Support Among Iraqis - from the Department of Defense



JuneauEmpire.com: Associated Press
Iraq blasts kill 22, including 2 Americans
Bush to honor the fallen soldiers of WWII
WHO asks Islamic nations for polio funds
Family of beheaded American seeks solace
U.S. band gives outdoor concert in Cuba
Airports not rushing for private screeners
Ministers urge N. Korea on nuclear talks


The US News: Iraq News
Iraqi PM says all Cabinet vacancies filled
American security guards among those killed in massive Baghdad explosion
Iraq, Jordan vow to fight terrorism
Iraqi kidnappers give ultimatum for Bay Area captive
Turkish - Arab Economic Forum
Suicide Bombers Strike in Central Baghdad, Agreement Reached on Six Cabinet Positions
US Marine from Camp Lejeune killed in central Iraq
Iraqi cabinet under pressure as bombers kill 67


Various Sources
SUV convoy explodes in Baghdad, 22 killed
Iraq agrees cabinet posts; Baghdad bomb kills 17


Fox News
Volcker Lawyer Asks U.N.to Block U.S. Subpoenas
Afghan Blast Kills U.N. Worker
Nixon Probe Leader Dies
Biden Scolds Rice on Bolton
U.S. Band Plays Gig in Cuba
Exiled Leader Back in Beirut
Asian, European Nations Urge North Korea on Nuke Talks
Myanmar Explosions Kill 11
Dems Kicked Out of Church
Iraqis Shore Up Cabinet Posts
Iraqi Ministry Official Assassinated

Video
Bombs Explode, Bodies Found


Department of Defense
ON THE GROUND
'Immersion:' Next Best Thing to Being There — Story
U.S. Pilots Train Iraqis to Fly C-130 Hercules — Story
Combat Medics Keeps Soldiers Healthy — Story
Mechanic Reunites with Parents on Television — Story

IN IRAQ
Coalition Helps Rebuild Mosque, Buildings
Soldiers Help Ensure Agricultural Success
Joint Force Eliminates Lines at Gas Pumps
Helicopters Move Targets to Firing Range
Soldiers Shepherd Sheep to Needy Families
Military Working Dogs Essential Tool in Iraq
Intel Specialists Focus on Insurgent Strategy

IN AFGHANISTAN
Medical Logistics Unit Wraps Up Deployment
Communications Platform Proves Its Worth
'White Devils' Recon Khost Province

IN THE PERSIAN GULF
USS Kearsarge on Station in Persian Gulf

IN SOUTHWEST ASIA
JSTARS Reaches 10,000 Combat Hours

FACE OF DEFENSE
Pendleton Sergeant Volunteers to Serve in Iraq — Story

TOP NEWS
IN IRAQ
Marine Killed; Weapons Seized
Soldiers Capture 22 Insurgents
Search Teams Locate Pilot's Body
Success in Iraq - DoD Fact Sheet
Year in Review 2004 Fact Sheets (pdf)
Iraq Daily Update
Multinational Force Iraq
Iraq Reconstruction
Maps
Weekly Progress Report (pdf)

IN AFGHANISTAN
Drugs Seized in Ghazni Province
Change of Command for Coalition
Afghan Forces Battle Insurgents
Afghanistan Daily Update
Maps

WAR ON TERRORISM
Waging and Winning the War on Terror
Terrorism Timeline
Terrorism Knowledge Base

MILITARY NEWS
Military to Improve Training
DoD Committed to Childcare Needs
'Geospatial Intel' Saves Lives
War Game Contemplates 'What If'
Pentagon Honors Award Winners
National Guard, Reserve Update
HONORING THE FALLEN
Soldiers Pay Tribute to Fallen MP — Story


Weather
from The Weather Channel

Iraq
Al Azamiyah Al Basrah Al Hillah Al Karkh Al Kazimiyah Al Kut An Nasiriyah Baghdad Baqubah Mosul Najaf Nineveh Tall Kayf

Afghanistan
Bost/Laskar Ghurian Herat Kabul Qandahar


Today in History
1360 - The English and French sign the Treaty of Brétigny.
1541 - Hernando de Soto discovers the Mississippi River.
1639 - William Coddington founds Newport, RI.
1792 - The US establishes the military draft.
1794 - The US Post Office is established.
1846 - The first major battle of the Mexican War is fought in Palo Alto, Texas.
1858 - John Brown holds an antislavery convention.
1861 - Richmond VA, becomes the Confederacy's capital.
1864 - Battle of Antietam (Spotsylvania Court House / Laurel Hill) in Virginia.
1895 - China cedes Taiwan to Japan, under the Treaty of Shimonoseki.
1916 - In Fort Douaumont, a German munitions bunker explodes.
1919 - A Navy seaplane makes the first transatlantic flight take-off.
1941 - The German Q-ship Pinguin sinks in the Indian Ocean.
1942 - The first twilight baseball game in 24 years raises $60,000 for the Navy Relief Fund (The Dodgers beat the Giants, 7-6).
- The Battle of the Coral Sea ends; a Japanese air attack sinks the aircraft carrier Lexington.
1942 - In the Crimea, the Germans begin their summer offensive.
1943 - British Admiral Andrew B. "ABC" Cunningham, Commander-in-chief of the Mediteranean fleet, orders the Allied navy to "Sink, burn & destroy; let nothing pass" in order to prevent Axis forces on the verge of surrender from leaving North Africa
1944 - 33 communist resistance fighters are sentenced to death
- the U-575 sinks the Asphodel
1945 - Canadian troops move into Amsterdam
- The Chinese counter attack at Tsjangte, supports by 14th air fleet
- Near Berlin, German General Von Keitel surrenders to Marshal Zhukov
- V-E Day - Germany signs an unconditional surrender
1949 - West German constitution approved
1958 - In Peru, US Vice President Nixon is shoved, stoned, booed & spat upon by protesters. 1960 - The USSR resumes diplomatic relations with Cuba.
1961 - Alan Shepard receives the NASA Distinguished Service Medal.
1962 - The first launch of an Atlas Centaur occurs.
1967 - Muhammad Ali is indicted for refusing induction in the US Army.
1970 - Construction workers break up an anti-war rally in Wall Street, New York City.
1972 - At Lod International, Tel Aviv, Palestinian terrorists capture a Sabena aircraft.
1973 - Indians holding Wounded Knee, South Dakota, surrender after a 10-week standoff.
1980 - The World Health Organization announces smallpox has been eradicated.
1984 - The USSR announces it will not participate in the Summer Olympics, in Los Angeles.
1987 - Gary Hart quits the US Democratic presidential race because of the Donna Rice affair.
1991 - CIA director William H. Webster resigns
1994 - President Clinton announces that the US will no longer repatriate boat people.
1996 - South Africa adopts a permanent post-apartheid constitution.


Birthdays
1753 - Miguel Hidalgo y Castilla, father of Mexican independence.
1810 - James Cooper, Union Brigadier General.
1833 - Frank Wheaton, Union Brevet Major General.
1836 - Bryan Morel Thomas, Confederate Brigadier General.
1884 - Harry S. Truman, 33rd US President
1925 - Ali Hassan Mwinyi, President of Tanzania.
1928 - Theodore Sorensen, JFK's advisor, and author of 1000 Days.
1936 - Neville Purvis, British Vice Admiral, Chief of Fleet Support.
1937 - Dennis DeConcini (Senator-AZ).
1937 - Michael Simmons, Air Marshal, British Ministry of Defense.
1941 - James A. Traficant, Jr. (Representative-OH).
1952 - Charles J. Camarda New York, Ph.D/astronaut
1963 - Clemens Lothaller Austria, cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-13 backup)




TRAFFIC CONTROL— Soldiers prepare to stop a group vehicles approaching their traffic control point in Qayyarah, Iraq, May 2, 2005. The soldiers are assigned to the 25th Infantry Division's Battery C, 2nd Battalion, 8th Field Artillery Regiment. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Jory C. Randall

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