9 posts tagged “173rd”
From Blackfive, courtesey of Uncle Jimbo
OK, I have some pictures in my photo section.
A few pictures from Walter Reed are here.
No, no one came out of the closet. I mean we went out on the town, (Washington, DC), with some very fine young men from Chosen Company, Second 503 173DABN.
We were accompanied by Uncle Jimbo from Blackfive, Jonn Lilyea, from ThisAIntHell, (but you can see it from here) and Tankerbabe.
Jonn has a post up already about last night. It features yours truly in a supporting role alongside the irrepressible Uncle Jimbo, as we try to join the pinkos/union thugs down the street from the Main Gate at Walter Reed and call for the immediate withdrawl of Russian troops from Georgia. (The country, not the state)
We all want peace, right?
We all had our 173D Sky Angels t-shirts on. (Well, except Jonn, who does have one, but refused to dis-robe in public, in spite of several car bombs, and Harps) You can get yours by going to the 173rdSky Angels Fund website and placing your order. Do it now, before they sell out.
I have met hundreds of soldiers and Marines over the course of the past 3 years. Most of them I met at Walter Reed. I am still awestruck by these young men (and women) who volunteer to serve our country. They never claim heroic acts, never take credit for actions above and beyond, preferring instead to state emphatically, "It was THAT guy that did it", "I just did my job", "HE deserves the medal, not me".
Young, dedicated, Warriors. These are the survivors of ambushes and firefights by sadistic militants from muslim countries fixated on one goal, killing innocents in the name of some twisted belief that they are superior.
These young men are heroes. Their stories will be told. Their sacrifices and honor will be made public and when the history books are written, we will call these Warriors, our Greatest Generation.
You can take that to the bank.
H/T to Laughing Wolf from Blackfive.
Stars and Stripes has the story after the jump.
While you're at Blackfive check out the free-fly from Uncle Jimbo and Kev of the fund-raiser for the 173DABN Homecoming.
Thank You UJ, Kev, Tankerbabe and Blackfive. That was above and beyond the call. BRAVO ZULU
Prayers up for the families and the men dealing with the aftermath.
These were our guys. Short time is the worst. You still have to do your job, knowing you're going home in a month. 30 and wake-up. 20 and a wake-up. You get nervous. You get cautious to the point of hesitancy. Sometimes you even get complacent, and complacency kills.
The enemy knows our deployment routine. They knew these guys were short time. The ACM (Anti-Coalition Militia) will step up attacks in the next three weeks.
On the other hand, it's crap like this that needs to be stopped. Note that the Taliban says the women had been ACCUSED of prostitution, not actually proven to be true.
Elsewhere, Taliban militants executed two women in central Afghanistan late Saturday after accusing them of working as prostitutes on a U.S. base.
The women, dressed in blue burqas, were shot and killed just outside Ghazni city in central Afghanistan, said Sayed Ismal, a spokesman for Ghazni's governor. He called the two "innocent local people."
Taliban fighters told Associated Press Television News the two women were executed for allegedly running a prostitution ring catering to U.S. Soldiers and other foreign contractors at a U.S. base in Ghazni city.
1st Lt. Nathan Perry, a U.S. military spokesman, said he had not heard allegations "anything close to that nature."
Click this link and help us show these Warriors what a homecoming is supposed to feel like.
The battle in Afghanistan rages as the Taliban and insurgents fight to keep that country in the Dark Ages and our brave men and women of the 173rd Airborne fight to make life better for the people who truly want freedom.
With the successes in Iraq mounting, the cowards of the army of allah will cut their losses and move to more hospitable surroundings.
That means the frontlines of the Global War on Terror will be where it has always been, where it all started, in the mountainous regions of the Kunar and Nuristan Provinces in northeastern Afghanistan.
It is a cold hard desolate region.
Kunar is a tiny and sparsely populated province that is heavily mountainous and forested, being embedded in the Hindu Kush mountain range.
During both the Soviet occupation, and the more recent conflicts involving U.S., Afghan and NATO forces, Kunar has been a favored spot of insurgent groups. Its impenetrable terrain, extensive cave networks and border with the semi-autonomous Pakistani Northwest Frontier Province provides several advantages for militant groups. Kunar Province is informally known as "Enemy Central" by American troops.
Pakistan has everything Osama bin Laden and his followers require: political instability, angry young – and unemployed - anti-Western students , secluded training areas, access to current electronic technology, access to travel to the west, and security services that have their own agendas. Equally important, there is no check on either the security services or the rebels; there is no American military presence looking for terrorists in Pakistan.
Like many of the mountainous northeastern provinces of Afghanistan, the groups involved in armed conflict vary greatly in strength and purpose. Native Taliban forces mingle with foreign Al-Qaeda fighters, while mujahadeen militias, such as Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hezbi Islami-Gulbuddin HIG continue to operate as they did in the anarchic post-Soviet years. Another strong militia in the region is the Hezbi Islami faction of the late Mulavi Younas Khalis, who had his headquarters in neighboring Nuristan Province.
Compounding the problems of the province is an extensive criminal trade in smuggled lumber and other natural resources. This criminal activity is often organized along tribal lines, and has led to intense deforestation in some areas.
The brave men and women of the 2-503 Infantry Regiment from the 173rd Airborne Infantry are less than 50 miles from the Pakistan border and fighting daily in conditions which are steadily getting worse as winter sets in.
This past Friday, we lost 6 more of these brave soldiers. “C” (Chosen) Company 2-503 INF 173rd Airborne Infantry lost 5 soldiers and 1 Marine.
In just two weeks, the 173rd has lost 8 soldiers and 1 Marine to Taliban fighters.
The last 6 were ambushed returning from a meeting with local officials in Nuristan Province by Taliban forces. The 173rd are part of a PRT (Provisional Reconstruction Team.) They assist local leaders with re-building or repairing the local infrastructure.
On 9 November, Combined Joint Task Force 82 reported that a group of insurgents destroyed a Micro Hydro Power Station in central Kunar Province. Hundreds of families are affected by the resulting loss of electricity. Little of the land in this area of the Hindu Kush Mountains lies below 6000 ft. elevation, snow has been building on the mountain peaks, (many more than 12,000 ft,) since mid-October. Travel will be severely curtailed and in places impossible by the middle of December. The Taliban insurgency continues to target infrastructure and reconstruction as they attempt to discredit the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan’s democratic government.
The Taliban would prefer these people remain in the Dark Ages, unencumbered by the luxury of supplies of clean drinking water, decent sanitary facilities, electricity and warmth. It’s easier to justify your own misery when you can force others to join you against their will and proclaim it a false prophets’ decree.
We have shipped over 400 pounds of winter gear and personal items to the 173rd, but we need more. There are approximately 800 men and women standing the fence and we need to get them more gear.
I have made arrangements with BassProShops and US Cavalry.com.
I have links on my site http://dcprotestwarrior.blogspot.com to make ordering and shipping as easy as possible.
6% of the money spent for supplies from these two sites will go to Soldiers Angels.
Thank you for your past support of our brave men and women fighting the War on Terror and I hope you can see your way clear to help out with this project.
This is where our guys are.
From Combined Joint Task Force 82:
Ghaziabad, Kunar Province: A group of insurgents destroyed a Micro Hydro Power Station in central Kunar Province. Hundreds of families are affected by the resulting loss of electricity.
Little of the land in this area of the Hindu Kush Mountains lies below 6000 ft. elevation, snow has been building on the mountain peaks, many more than 12,000 ft, since mid-October. Travel will be severely curtailed and in places impossible by the middle of December.
The Taliban insurgency continues to target infrastructure and reconstruction as they attempt to discredit the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan’s democratic government.
The Governor and Coalition Forces will deliver supplies and resources to avert any loss of life during the harsh winter, both the local elders and the Chief of Police have vowed to catch these insurgents.
We have some very dedicated soldiers standing the fence in this region. We're still trying to get them some winter gear and tools.
Please visit DCProtestWarrior for more info and a link to help.
Ethnic Makeup and Geography
Pashtuns makes up the vast majority of the province and maintain a very strong tribal identity, some even going so far as to identify the province, and the eastern edge of Afghanistan in general, as "Pashtunistan".
Kunar is a tiny and sparsely populated province that is heavily mountainous and forested, being embedded in the Hindu Kush mountain range. As Kunar is populated by mainly Pashtuns, it will be useful to know that local people pronounce the name as Kunar or کونر.
Security Situation
During both the Soviet occupation, and the more recent conflicts involving U.S., Afghan and NATO forces, Kunar has been a favoured spot of insurgent groups. Its impenetrable terrain, extensive cave networks and border with the semi-autonomous Pakistani Northwest Frontier Province provides several advantages for militant groups. The province is informally known as "Enemy Central" by American troops.
Like many of the mountainous eastern provinces of Afghanistan, the groups involved in armed conflict vary greatly in strength and purpose. Native Taliban forces mingle with foreign Al-Qaeda fighters, while mujahadeen militias, such as Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hezbi Islami-Gulbuddin HIG, continue to operate as they did in the anarchic post-Soviet years. Another strong militia in the region is the Hezbi Islami faction of the late Mulavi Younas Khalis, who had his headquarters in neighbouring Nurestan Province.
Compounding the problems of the province is an extensive criminal trade in smuggled lumber and other natural resources. This criminal activity is often organized along tribal lines, and has led to intense deforestation in some areas.
Hunt for Bin Laden
Osama bin Laden has often been rumoured to be in the province, or close by. In an intensive military operation in summer 2005, called Operation Red Wing, American forces undertook a massive hunt for bin Laden and other senior Al-Qaeda leaders. While attempting to rescue four stranded Navy Seals during the operation, 19 American Forces were killed when their CH-47 Chinook helicopter was shot down, representing the single biggest loss of American forces since their invasion of the country.
Big & Rich Video with introduction by Kris Kristofferson
My friends at FreeRepublic have stepped up and lent a hand.
One of them has created a tribute to the illustrious history of the 173rd Airborne Brigade.
They have truly been the Tip of the Spear since their inception.
Thank You StarCMC for taking the time to design and post this important piece of military history.
From the jungles of Southeast Asia in November of '65 to the mountainous regions of the Afghan/Pakistan border in November of '07, the 173rd Airborne Brigade has been the first line of defense, taking the heat and giving what they got and then some.
They are Warriors.
Rush in a Hurry is up at DCProtestWarrior
Good stuff.
Rush appeared on MSNBC's "Morning Joe." The free transcript and audio and video are posted.
Stay updated on the mission at TankerBabe's site.
Friends, I know eveyone is constantly bombarded with requests for money, send stuff there, send stuff here. I hate it. I hate being asked and I hate asking.
What I hate even more is finding out a soldier is cold or hungry. Yeah yeah, it goes with the job..but we can do something to help. We can make the desolate hopeful. We can do the work SOME politicians WON'T do.
We know how. We have the resources. We have the will. We know how to make a difference in the lives of the soldiers deployed on the front lines of the War on Terror. The men of the 173rd 2-503 and the 1st 91 are on the front lines of the fight to end the terror. They are taking the heat for us, and no one has asked us to sacrifice one single thing.
With the surge in Iraq working, Al-Qeda is going to cut their losses and re-focus their efforts on the Afghan-Pakistan region. That means these men will be working even harder. They will be facing the evil that murdered 3,000 innocent people on 11 September 2001. They will be the ones with the bulls-eyes on their backs. They will die for us if asked.
WHAT WILL YOU DO FOR THEM??????
TankerBabe and I are doing everything we can with the resources we have, and I want to thank everyone who has stepped up and made a difference.
But we need more. I'm sorry, but the fact is WE NEED MORE. We need more balaclavas, more scarves, more socks, more boots, more blankets. We need them NOW. We needed them yesterday.
PLEASE, for the sake of these brave men standing 12,000 feet on a mountain, do what you know is right. Help us take care of these brave warriors. No one else will. The politicians sure as hell won't.
If not us, who? If not now, WHEN??? Winter is coming. The Afghan mountains are brutal. Suppose it was your son? Your husband?
You know what? They are. Everyone of those men is family. We need to treat them like family.
Now, just to make things simple, if you look to your left, you'll see an avatar for US Cavalry. Clicking on that will take you straight to USCav.com. How sweet is that? You can help a whole bunch of brave Americans protecting us and you don't even have to leave the house. It doesn't get any easier or any better than that.
You can use Coupon Code USCCJ10 at checkout and save 10%
Now, just to make it even easier, here's a few links to the gear on USCav that the soldiers have asked us for:
Balaclavas
Gaiters
You can scroll down on these pages and if you're so inclined, there are some other winter items they could use.
For the price of a dinner out, you could outfit one soldier with gear to keep him warm and alert while he's doing his job protecting us by ridding the world of the scum-sucking islamo-fascists who, if given the opportunity, would kill every American they could.
I've been asked for addresses; I cannot and will not release the addresses of any deployed soldier. I will however, give you an addresss to ship to until we get things finialized with USCav;
Attn; concretebob
1 West Cary Street
Richmond, VA 23220
