The Afghan War May Be Over, But its Scars Will Last Forever

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Military news….

The last U.S. military aircraft has left Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport, marking the final moment of America’s longest war. The conflict left thousands of American troops and Afghan citizens dead and injured and shaped an entire generation of American service members.

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As the ground war in Afghanistan comes to an end, the military’s mission elsewhere continues, like in California, where Air Force Tactical Air Control Party members are helping firefighters battle wildfires. But they are not calling in airstrikes like they would in a combat zone. Instead, they are doing something much more useful.

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Sometimes good news comes in the strangest forms, like when a Navy challenge coin saved the life of an Oklahoma police officer by stopping the bullet that would have hit his femoral artery.

Even if Staff Sgt. Ryan Knauss knew he would die in Kabul, he still would have deployed there, said his wife Alena, who survived Knauss after the Special Forces soldier was killed in a suicide bombing in Afghanistan last week. The 23-year-old was a remarkable man.

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My view…

Yes, the Afghan war is over, but its scars last for ever.

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Another reminder is that I have slowed down my sharing of excerpts from my upcoming book. Signs of Hope for the Military: In an Out of the trenches of Life.

Speaking of trenches, one of my sections of the book is called, Voices from the Trenches.

These will be actual interviews from soldiers who have been deployed to a foreign land. Many of the interviews were very hard for me to do. They talk about death. They talk about lost buddies.

They talk about near death experiences. Some are even funny.

Stay with me on this. Please go to the top of this page and click on “Subscribe.” When you do, all future post will come directly to your inbox.

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Is your world controlled by nightmares? Are there things you try to forget, but can’t?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 12,900 fellow veterans here who have your back.

If the nightmares are overcoming you, GET HELP!

Here is a toll free number to call 24/7. There are Highly qualified counselors there to help you. They ill not hang up until they know you are OK.

1-800-273-8255…texting 838255

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Thirteen Soldiers Died in Afghanistan, and it Shouldn’t Have Happened

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Military news…

Speaking of Afghanistan: after two decades of war, American service members and Taliban militants have been standing within an arm’s length of one another outside the airport in Kabul.

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Thirteen American service members were killed on Thursday in suicide bombings at Kabul’s international airport in Afghanistan. The toll includes 11 U.S. Marines, a Navy corpsman and an Army special operations soldier. They came from Texas, California, Utah, Tennessee, Wyoming and many other places and walks of life, and they died helping strangers in a far-off country.

A horrific suicide bombing on Thursday near the Abbey Gate of the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan killed hundreds of Afghan civilians, 11 U.S. Marines, a Navy corpsman, and an Army special operations soldier. Eighteen American military service members and many more Afghans were wounded in the attack, which took place at a crowded entry gate where U.S. troops were working day and night to rescue Americans and Afghans fleeing the Taliban.

“Terrorists took their lives at the very moment these troops were trying to save the lives of others,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement. “We mourn their loss. We will treat their wounds. And we will support their families in what will most assuredly be devastating grief.”

However, Austin added, “we will not be dissuaded from the task at hand. To do anything less — especially now — would dishonor the purpose and sacrifice these men and women have rendered our country and the people of Afghanistan.”

Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, the head of U.S. Central Command, attributed the attack to the Islamic State terrorist group operating in Afghanistan. Described as a “complex attack,” it was initiated by a suicide bombing outside of the Abbey Gate where U.S. troops manned checkpoints as Afghan civilians attempted to flee the country.

“The attack on the Abbey Gate was followed by a number of ISIS gunmen, who opened fire on civilians and military forces,” McKenzie told reporters.

The fallen service members were part of Operation Allies Refuge, the mission to evacuate American citizens and Afghans who assisted the U.S. and its allies during their 20-year war in Afghanistan. Earlier this month, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled the country, the Afghan security forces collapsed, and the Taliban quickly took Kabul. Withdrawing U.S. forces and the Taliban then entered into an uneasy truce in Kabul, with Taliban fighters cordoning off the streets leading to the airport as American troops manned checkpoints leading inside.

Prior to Thursday, the last U.S. service members to die in Afghanistan by hostile fire were Sgt. 1st Class Antonio Rodriguez and Sgt. 1st Class Javier Gutierrez, two Army Special Forces soldiers who were killed by Afghan soldiers in a green-on-blue incident in Nangarhar Province on Feb. 8, 2020. For the Marine Corps, Thursday’s attacks represent the first loss of life in Afghanistan in two years. The last occurred on April 8, 2019, when three Marine reservists were killed by a roadside bomb in Bagram.

“These fallen heroes answered the call to go into harm’s way to do the honorable work of helping others,” said. Gen. David H. Berger, the commandant of the Marine Corps. “We are proud of their service and deeply saddened by their loss. As we mourn, we also keep those who are still over there protecting Americans and our Afghan partners at the forefront of our thoughts. Our Marines will continue the mission, carrying on our Corps’ legacy of always standing ready to meet the challenges of every extraordinary task our Nation requires of her Marines. I am continually humbled by the courage and warrior spirit exhibited every day by Marines across the globe. The sacrifices Marines make on behalf of freedom must never go unnoticed or unappreciated. I ask that you keep these Marines and service members, and especially their families, in your thoughts and prayers.”

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My view….

I am grieving as if I lost a family member. The oldest soldier was only 25. The youngest 20. Two were women. This shouldn’t have happened. We knew long before the disaster that we needed to get people out. As far back as July.

If we would have started then, we would have been able to get all the afghan people out that wanted to go, and all the Americans as well.

Now thousands of people will be stranded. They will face horrendous times with the Taliban. Many shootings and killings. One women was burned alive because she didn’t fix a meal they way the Taliban wanted her to.

We were way too late to start evacuating people.

Our leadership totally failed.

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Book coming out soon…

Another reminder that I have slowed down my sharing excerpt from my upcoming book, Signs of hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.

You can search the archives for some previous excerpts. My publisher has asked me not to share too much of the book.

You can still catch some I “slip,” in during the coming weeks. All you have to do is go to the top of this page and click on “Subscribe.”

When you do that all future posts will come directly to your inbox.

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Bed check…

How are you doing? Do the days seem dim, and the nights long?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 12, 900 fellow veterans here who have your back.

If the long nights are too much for you, GET HELP!

Here is a toll free number to call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you. They will not hang up until they now you are OK.

1-800-273-8255… Texting 838255.

_____________________________________

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above ll…never, ever, give up!

_______________________________________

+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.

President Biden is on Another Planet. He Doesn’t Know What is Going on

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Military news…

All U.S. service members will be required to get the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine made by the drug manufacturer Pfizer. The news comes the same day the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted full approval to Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine.

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“If I weren’t so emotionally detached from all things Afghan, I might feel great compassion and sorrow for those who remain under Taliban rule,” writes Afghanistan veteran Brandon Caro. But the former Navy corpsman does not feel those emotions, “because I can’t.” 

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Amid the collapse of the Afghan government and the flight of thousands of refugees, there was a bright spot in the fact that three babies were born safely amidst the U.S. evacuation from country.

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A Fort Jackson soldier has been convicted of third-degree assault and battery after he was caught on video shoving a Black man in his neighborhood. The soldier, Sgt. 1st Class Jonathan Pentland, was charged with assault back in April.

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President Joe Biden said last week that the U.S. drove Al Qaeda out of Afghanistan. He’s dead wrong. Not only is Al Qaeda present across Afghanistan, but it now has friends in high places due to the Taliban re-conquering the country.

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My view…

My view is that President Biden is in a complete fog. He is totally lost. He is saying things are going great in Afghanistan, and yet pictures coming home from there shows a completely different picture.

I shared some of the gore in my last post. I do not wish to share more.

Something has to be done. There are strong rumors that both parties in Congress are getting very frustrated with the president. Maybe a impeachment is coming.

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I have been sharing with you that I have slowed down my experts from my upcoming book, Signs of Hope for the military: In and Out of the Trenches o Life.

It is getting near the time for my publisher to take over for me. They suggest I work on marketing more, and less sharing.

One way to make sure you keep up with everything happening on this site is to subscribe right now. Just go up to the subscribe button at the top of this page to subscribe.

When you do all future posts will directly to your inbox.

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Checking in your you. How are you doing? Have you had some experiences while serving that are still haunting you?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 12, 850 fellow veterans subscribed to this site that have your back.

But if the waves of life are overcoming you, GET HELP!

Here is a toll free number to call 24/7.

There are highly qualified counselors there to help you, and they will not hang up until they know you are OK.

Never face this world alone!

1-800-273-8255…Texting 838255

________________________________________

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

________________________________________

+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know.