Hats off and a thank you
I hadn’t heard about this tale of true American heroism myself until now:
Here’s a Memorial Day quiz:
1. Who is Jessica Lynch?
Correct. She’s the Army private captured, and later rescued, in the early days of the war.
2. Who is Leigh Ann Hester?
Come on. The Kentucky National Guard vehicle commander was awarded a Silver Star last year for fighting off an insurgent attack on a convoy in Iraq. The first woman to receive a Silver Star since World War II, and the first woman ever to receive one for close combat.
If you don’t recognize Sergeant Hester’s name, that’s not surprising. While Private Lynch’s ordeal appears in some 12,992 newspaper and broadcast reports on the Factiva news service, Sergeant Hester and her decoration for extraordinary valor show up in only 162.
One difference: Sergeant Hester is a victor, while Private Lynch can be seen as a victim. And when it comes to media reports about the military these days, victimology is all the rage. For every story about someone who served out of conviction and resolutely went on with his civilian life, there are many more articles about a soldier’s failure or a veteran’s floundering.
It’s a sign of some progress that the men and women returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are not spit upon and shunned as Vietnam vets were. Yet there may be something more pernicious about mouthing “Support Our Troops” while also asserting that many of them are poor, uneducated dupes who were cannon fodder overseas and have come home as basket cases, plagued by a range of mental, emotional and financial problems.
The vast majority of vets don’t fit that description.
The liberal media knows about as much about veterans and military affairs as they do about guns; i.e., nothing whatsoever, and their embarrassingly half-assed coverage always reflects that disdainful ignorance. Their version of “support” for the troops is invariably crippling, demoralizing, and downright insulting, from their op-ed pity-parties for the poor stupes who supposedly sign up only for college bucks or other selfish reasons, to their infantilizing of American “kids” in uniform.
My cap is duly doffed to Sgt Hester, and to all our servicemen and women. Heartfelt gratitude to you all for your service and your sacrifice in defense of freedom; regardless of the thinly-veiled contempt for you and your mission that passes for “support” from some apatriotic quarters, you should know that most Americans honor and support you without reservation.
Update! As one might expect, Blackfive has more on Hester’s derring-do. If you want the real skinny on things military, bypass the clueless and unreliable MSM and head straight for the milblogs.
- Entries
I find it interesting that you find fault with the "liberal media" for lapping it up, but find no fault with the Pentagon for dishing it out.
meh.
Zorro, even you can't possibly be stupid enough to think we'd believe the Pentagon is responsible for a 12,992:162 ratio. Even you can't think we'd believe the media is that much of a brainless victim. So why did you lie about it?