Memorial Day
My grandfather served in the United States Air Force during World War II and Korea, and on Memorial Day, he is often in my thoughts. I hope you take a few moments on this important day to remember the men and women who have given all for our freedom.
I’ve been all but absent from blogging for the last ten days. Part of it was work responsibilities, with a big event coming up in Silicon Valley in a few weeks. Another part was that I’ve been working on a series of posts about a cause very near and dear to my heart, and that has taken up a lot of time. Getting closer to sharing those with you.
In any case, I think that I’m back in the saddle tomorrow. Hopefully those of you who are regular readers didn’t mind the absence too much.
Have a great Memorial Day and remember that freedom is never free!
“Because Long Before He Changed the World, He Inspired our Company”
(Mobile, feed and e-mail readers: embedded video above.)
As you may remember, before he was President, Ronald Reagan was an ambassador for General Electric, touring the country and making speeches at their plants, as well as the host of the company’s weekly television show on CBS.
Today, GE is remembering President Reagan’s leadership by sponsoring the Ronald Reagan Centennial Celebration. I love the quote from the ad: “Because long before he changed the world, or led a nation, or governed a state, he inspired our company.”
On days like these, I sure miss President Reagan.
President Obama Nails it in Oslo
(E-mail and RSS feed readers can click through for the video.)
Most of you know that I haven’t been the biggest fan of President Obama’s policies, but he absolutely nailed it today and deserves credit for the speech that he delivered in Oslo while accepting the Nobel Peace Prize.
“Make no mistake: evil does exist in the world. A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler’s armies. Negotiations could not convince Al-Qaeda’s leaders to lay down their arms.
“…whatever mistakes we have made, the plain fact is this: the United States of America has helped to underwrite global security for more than six decades with the blood of our citizens and the strength of our arms.”
Thank you, Mr. President, for recognizing our brave men and women in uniform for the tremendous sacrifices they have made to make our world a safer and more secure place. They deserved that speech, and you deserve our thanks for writing it.
If We Can’t Afford to Lose, Play to Win
Let’s leave beside the question of whether or not Iraq was the right war. During the 2008 presidential election, President Obama said we needed to pull out of Iraq so that we can double down on a “war of necessity” (as he termed it) in Afghanistan.
Instead, the President and his foreign policy team have been locked in a multi-month prolonged period of indecision. Meanwhile, precious time has slipped away that could have been used to develop the security needed to make political progress in the country — the strategy employed by Secretary Gates that worked in Iraq.
On Sunday, David Broder — one of the longtime political journalists at the Washington Post — opened the floodgates of question about this lack of decisiveness by the President.
The more President Obama examines our options in Afghanistan, the less he likes the choices he sees. But, as the old saying goes, to govern is to choose — and he has stretched the internal debate to the breaking point.
The cost of indecision is growing every day. Americans, our allies who have contributed their own troops to the struggle against al-Qaeda and the Taliban, and the Afghans and their government are waiting impatiently, while the challenge is getting worse.
…The president, notwithstanding his earlier rhetoric and actions, has hesitated to resolve the issue. Obama needs to remember what Clark Clifford, one of Harry Truman’s closest advisers, said: that the president “believed that even a wrong decision was better than no decision at all.”
…Meantime, events in Afghanistan support McChrystal’s prediction that delay in expanding the U.S. troop commitment will almost certainly lead to gains for the Taliban and greater risk for U.S. and allied troops.
…Given all of this, I don’t see how Obama can refuse to back up the commander he picked and the strategy he is recommending. It may not work if the country truly is ungovernable. But I think we have to gamble that security will bring political progress — as it has done in Iraq.
Obama did not believe that could happen there. But given what he inherited, and given what he has done so far, I think he has no choice but to play out that hand. If we can’t afford to lose, then play to win.
What do you think? Is the President simply trying to make a thorough decision, or is he “dithering” as Broder and others have said? Can we afford to lose in Afghanistan?
Wow, This Community Really Stepped Up for “A Soldier in Need”
I’m behind in updating you all on the efforts to help “A Soldier in Need” which I first blogged about back on October 5. In a nutshell, Jimmy Katches contracted Lyme Disease while in the United States Army but the Veteran’s Administration denied medical treatment. So we decided as a community to step up and help.
A great friend here in Colfax, Stephanie Gargan, scheduled a fundraiser at the local community center. Many of us posted about this on blogs, Facebook and Twitter. And the response was amazing! You might say “some gave…even more retweeted!”
The total amount raised for Jimmy’s treatment was $20,000, which I’m told by his wife Kristi will get them at least 18 months of treatment with antibiotics and a PICC line — which has every potential of curing the Lyme Disease permanently. In addition, both Sutter Health and Dr. Jared Thomas stepped up some free treatment, so this family has an amazing chance to put this health issue behind them.
I know none of these folks gave for personal recognition, but it’s appropriate to thank them here:
- Cindy Burtt
- Samuel Carstenson
- Mark Chesner
- Christine Grabyan
- Dave and Aimee Rohrer
- Rebecca Sadler
- Dr. Jared Thomas (free medical care)
- Meredith Turney
- 2 Anonymous Donors (I know who you are, and thank you again!)
To me, this is a little picture of what makes America great. Not sitting around and waiting for a government 3,000 miles away to do something, but a community of people stepping up to help their brother or sister in need. That’s exactly what we were all privileged to do with the Katches family, and thank you for being a part of it.
An Amazing Response for “A Soldier in Need”
I’m just downright speechless about the response you all have given to the post about “A Soldier in Need” that originally appeared here on the blog nine days ago on October 5.
When we last updated you on our progress on October 9, we had raised $430 and set a goal of $750 by the time the fundraiser arrived on October 17.
Well, thanks to each and every one of you, you certainly blew that away!
We’ve now raised an amazing total of $1,780 to help Jimmy Katches with his medical expenses, along with the offer of some free medical treatment as well. That’s incredible!
There are three days left until the fundraiser for Jimmy. If anyone else wants to join this incredible gift to a family who is so thankful for the support from their community — there’s still a few days to do so.
Just use PayPal to send your donation to ak@aaronklein.com — and every penny will go to this family for their medical expenses.
I know that none of these folks have donated for the purpose of recognition, but they deserve our thanks, and here they are:
- Cindy Burtt
- Samuel Carstenson
- Mark Chesner
- Christine Grabyan
- Dave and Aimee Rohrer
- Rebecca Sadler
- Dr. Jared Thomas (free medical care)
- Meredith Turney
- 2 Anonymous Donors (I know who you are, and thank you again!)
Again, we’ll be updating the blog with our thanks to the donors all the way through the fundraiser next week. Whether it’s sending a few dollars yourself, or retweeting this post on to your own friends on Twitter or Facebook, I know this “soldier in need” and his family is very grateful for your help.
So keep spreading the word: only 3 days left before the fundraiser!
Breaking News: I Agree with Thomas Friedman on Something
Amazing. Thomas Friedman writes a column in Sunday’s New York Times and I agree with almost every word. This is remarkable, because he’s written some truly ridiculous stuff before.
But this one is a winner from its beginning to its end, because it’s about what’s right about America…
The Nobel committee did President Obama no favors by prematurely awarding him its peace prize. As he himself acknowledged, he has not done anything yet on the scale that would normally merit such an award — and it dismays me that the most important prize in the world has been devalued in this way.
It is not the president’s fault, though, that the Europeans are so relieved at his style of leadership, in contrast to that of his predecessor, that they want to do all they can to validate and encourage it. I thought the president showed great grace in accepting the prize not for himself but “as an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations.”
All that said, I hope Mr. Obama will take this instinct a step further when he travels to Oslo on Dec. 10 for the peace prize ceremony. Here is the speech I hope he will give:
“Let me begin by thanking the Nobel committee for awarding me this prize, the highest award to which any statesman can aspire. As I said on the day it was announced, ‘I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many of the transformative figures who’ve been honored by this prize.’ Therefore, upon reflection, I cannot accept this award on my behalf at all.
“But I will accept it on behalf of the most important peacekeepers in the world for the last century — the men and women of the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps.
“I will accept this award on behalf of the American soldiers who landed on Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944, to liberate Europe from the grip of Nazi fascism. I will accept this award on behalf of the American soldiers and sailors who fought on the high seas and forlorn islands in the Pacific to free East Asia from Japanese tyranny in the Second World War.
“…So for all these reasons — and so you understand that I will never hesitate to call on American soldiers where necessary to take the field against the enemies of peace, tolerance and liberty — I accept this peace prize on behalf of the men and women of the U.S. military: the world’s most important peacekeepers.”
Wow! Major Progress for “A Soldier in Need”
Since I first posted A Soldier in Need, readers of this blog have generously helped in so many ways. They’ve retweeted and reposted the story, and five of you have now generously made donations totaling $430! (Plus, some free medical treatment!)
Our special thanks go to:
- Samuel Carstenson
- Christine Grabyan
- Rebecca Sadler
- Dr. Jared Thomas (free medical care)
- Meredith Turney
- 1 Anonymous Donor
Can we keep the bandwagon rolling for the Katches family? We’ve got just a few more days left before the fundraiser, and it would be awesome if we could hit $750 by then. If we can keep up the rate we’re going, we can totally make that goal!
Just use PayPal to send your donation to ak@aaronklein.com — and every penny will go to this family for their medical expenses.
We’ll be updating the blog with our thanks to the donors all the way through the fundraiser next week. Whether it’s sending a few dollars yourself, or retweeting this post on to your own friends on Twitter or Facebook, I know this “soldier in need” and his family is very grateful for your help.
Local hero makes the ultimate sacrifice
A member of the Sierra College family is grieving today over the loss of Sergeant Joshua Hardt. If you haven’t heard the story, a single unit based out of Fort Carson in Colorado suffered the loss of eight American heroes in a firefight in Afghanistan.
Sergeant Hardt was the son-in-law of this college leader. Because I haven’t spoken directly with this person, I’ll refrain from publishing that leader’s name, but our hearts are heavy today for this wonderful colleague and the extraordinary grief the family is experiencing.
Here’s a quote from the story:
The Pentagon announcement Wednesday confirmed their worst fears — the eight American soldiers killed in a bloody weekend attack in Afghanistan were all from a single Fort Carson unit.
One of them was Sgt. Joshua M. Hardt, 24, of Applegate, which is along Interstate 80 in Placer County between Auburn and Colfax.
Hardt was a graduate of Placer High School in Auburn and played football there, according to the Auburn Journal.
“They were attacked, the unit fought bravely, and in the end, they won the day,” said Maj. Daniel Chandler, the rear detachment commander for the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division. “The brave soldiers that we lost and all of the comrades that were left there, there were a lot of heroes on that day,” he said.
Hundreds of insurgents armed with automatic rifles and rocket-propelled grenades attacked the soldiers at two U.S. outposts in Nuristan province Saturday, causing one of the highest U.S. death tolls in Afghanistan in a single battle in more than a year.
We owe a great deal of gratitude to these brave American heroes who are fighting to protect our country and preserve our freedoms. Our hearts go out to Sergeant Hardt’s family — we are all immensely proud of this local hero’s service and sacrifice.
First Donor to “A Soldier in Need”
The response to yesterday’s post about Jimmy Katches has been pretty tremendous. A variety of friends have retweeted the post, a doctor in Roseville commented offering some free treatment…
…and this morning, Christine Grabyan is the first donor to this cause. She’s a relative of my friend Josh Morgan, and found this blog through his blog. Thanks, Christine! (And thanks, Josh!)
You can be the second! Just use PayPal to send your donation to ak@aaronklein.com — and every penny will go to the Katches for their medical expenses.
