For the people who still think....

[Froggystyle]

...that the president's visit to Iraq was a press stunt, check this out. This is a letter sent to a freind of mine still in the teams by a captain who is stationed in Iraq right now.
We knew there was a dinner planned with Ambassador Bremer and LTG Sanchez. There were 600 seats available and all the units in the division were tasked with filling a few tables. Naturally, the 501st MI battalion got our table. Soldiers were grumbling about having to sit through another dog-and-pony show, so we had to pick soldiers to attend. I chose not to go.
But, about 1500 the G2, LTC Devan, came up to me and with a smile, asked me to come to dinner with him, to meet him in his office at 1600 and bring a camera. I didn't really care about getting a picture with Sanchez or Bremer, but when the division's senior intelligence officer asks you to go, you go. We were seated in the chow hall, fully decorated for Thanksgiving when aaaaallllll kinds of secret service guys showed up.
That was my first clue, because Bremer's been here before and his personal security detachment is not that big. Then BG Dempsey got up to speak, and he welcomed ambassador Bremer and LTG Sanchez. Bremer thanked us all and pulled out a piece of paper as if to give a speech. He mentioned that the President had given him this thanksgiving speech to give to the troops. He then paused and said that the senior man present should be the one to give it. He then looked at Sanchez, who just smiled.
Bremer then said that we should probably get someone more senior to read the speech. Then, from behind the camouflage netting, the President of the United States came around. The mess hall actually erupted with hollering. Troops bounded to their feet with shocked smiles and just began cheering with all their hearts. The building actually shook. It was just unreal. I was absolutely stunned. Not only for the obvious, but also because I was only two tables away from the podium. There he stood, less than thirty feet away from me! The cheering went on and on and on.
Soldiers were hollering, cheering, and a lot of them were crying. There was not a dry eye at my table. When he stepped up to the cheering, I could clearly see tears running down his cheeks. It was the most surreal moment I've had in years. Not since my wedding and Aaron being born. Here was this man, our President, came all the way around the world, spending 17 hours on an airplane and landing in the most dangerous airport in the world, where a plane was shot out of the sky not six days before.
Just to spend two hours with his troops. Only to get on a plane and spend another 17 hours flying back. It was a great moment, and I will never forget it. He delivered his speech, which we all loved, when he looked right at me and held his eyes on me. Then he stepped down and was just mobbed by the soldiers. He slowly worked his way all the way around the chow hall and shook every last hand extended. Every soldier who wanted a photo with the President got one. I made my way through the line, got dinner, then wolfed it down as he was still working the room.
You could tell he was really enjoying himself. It wasn't just a photo opportunity. This man was actually enjoying himself! He worked his way over the course of about 90 minutes towards my side of the room. Meanwhile, I took the opportunity to shake a few hands. I got a picture with Ambassador Bremer, Talabani (acting Iraqi president) and Achmed Chalabi (another member of the ruling council) and Condaleeza Rice, who was there with him.
I felt like I was drunk. He was getting closer to my table so I went back over to my seat. As he passed and posed for photos, he looked my in the eye and "How you doin', captain." I smiled and said "God bless you, sir." To which he responded "I'm proud of what you do, captain." Then moved on.

[Kilrtoy]

Thanks,
that brings tears to my eyes.
those guys are doing shit we can never even fathom

[framer1]

Great post. Thanks

[MJ19]

I can honestly say I never thought it was a media "stunt"....too dangerous.
Getting a hummer in the oval office is a stunt (more like a joke)...visiting troops in a war land is a dedicated president...a president that knows where his duties lie...with the people!
Bush just plain rocks! :D

[mike37]

thanks Froggystyle
Bush just plain rocks!
got that right MJ19

[H20 Party Starter]

Bush for President!.......again:D :D :D

[MJ19]

Originally posted by H20 Party Starter
Bush for President!.......again:D :D :D
he's got MY vote :D

[quiet riot]

Thats pretty dammed cool. I'm sure they could use some moral boosting being stuck over there for the extended periods they are, it must be really hard on the families/troops. I'm very greatfull for all who have/are serving our country. To me, the hardest part would be leaving my family for a long time.
jd

[Mandelon]

It sucks how the media tries to portray everything he does in such a negative way. Thanks for the post.

[MJ19]

Originally posted by Mandelon
It sucks how the media tries to portray everything he does in such a negative way. Thanks for the post.
In fact, over the Turkey day weekend, I was reading an article about Bush going over there and the media themselves stated that the "other" media (whoever that is, if not them) would probably try and turn this great moral booster into a disaster...stating that the media would probably take the publicity stunt or putting soldiers in danger route...I was just waiting for the media to do what they said they would. Pretty Typical of the media :rolleyes:

[SPECTRABRENT]

Good Post,
Brent

[uclahater]

I got goose bumps reading it:) Thank you very much for the post:)

[hboldno7]

Thanks for posting that Froggy, i cant begin to imagine how those soldiers must have felt that were lucky enough to be in attendance.. Very Cool

[My Man's Sportin' Wood]

Thanks for sharing, that is awesome. Thank God we finally got a cowboy in the Whitehouse! Teddy Roosevelt was our last cowboy in there (well maybe Reagan) niether one of them took any sh!t from anyone either!
I think he's been a pretty good president, not the best, but at least I can be proud of how he acts. (Not what he says though, poor guy's got so many blunders I already saw a book of "Bushisms" LMAO!)

[Catmando]

Yeah he sneaks into Baghdad in the middle of the night, spends two hours with less than 200 troops, eating turkey at 6AM, only to see that Hillary beat him to the punch!!:D :D
Who woulda thunk it, a Democrat in a war zone.:D :D

[Kilrtoy]

Where was BILL oh yeah he had no balls to go >>>>>>>

[Froggystyle]

Originally posted by Catmando
Yeah he sneaks into Baghdad in the middle of the night, spends two hours with less than 200 troops, eating turkey at 6AM, only to see that Hillary beat him to the punch!!:D :D
Who woulda thunk it, a Democrat in a war zone.:D :D
Beat it... get off my thread :mad:

[honkey1]

Originally posted by Catmando
Yeah he sneaks into Baghdad in the middle of the night, spends two hours with less than 200 troops, eating turkey at 6AM, only to see that Hillary beat him to the punch!!:D :D
Who woulda thunk it, a Democrat in a war zone.:D :D
You don't know shit about what his apperance meant to those guys. As for Hillary who cares I'm sure most of them did'nt give two shits about seeing someone that dosn't support what they are trying to do.

[Lakeshow]

Thanks Froggy.

[framer1]

Hilary made a long trip just to bad mouth Bush, she's a piece of Sh**t:mad:

[burbanite]

Originally posted by Froggystyle
Beat it... get off my thread :mad:
Straight to the point...I like it.

[jbtrailerjim]

Good post Froggy.:) Those soldiers are some of the the bravest people in the world and I thank them.
Bush has definitely got my vote again.:)

[HOSS]

I like Bush but the new "no tariffs" deal on imported steel really sucks. This is gonna hurt. Better hunker down steel workers. This shit is gonna be around for a while.

[Laveyman]

Let me see...What would mean more to me if I were stationed in Iraq?
1. A sit-down dinner with the Commander in Chief of the most powerful & influential nation on earth. Or,
2. A dinner with some old hag, political hack who is riding on the coat tails of her friggin' husband should've taken care of Hussein and Bin Laden many years ago.
Seems like a pretty clear choice to me!

[Starboard]

Catmando,
You never cease to amaze me with your stupidity.
In my lurking experience, I have noticed on several occasions that you don't know when to keep your mouth quiet.
BTW Froggystyle,
Nice post. Thank you.

[Catmando]

Originally posted by Starboard
...In my lurking experience, I have noticed on several occasions that you don't know when to keep your mouth quiet.
From this post, it is obvious that lurking is what you do best. And yes, Liberals are not "quiet" any more. We're gonna run Chimpy McFlightsuit right out of office in November.:mad: :mad:

[MagicMtnDan]

Thanks for sharing the letter with us Wes.
It's really a shame we're going to get four more years of Catmando's bile because Bush will romp all over any one of the pathetic 9 Dems running.
Hey Catmando, go start your own thread you jackass. You only come out of your hole to cause trouble (you're a left wing troll).

[Havasu Cig]

Good post Froggy....In 91 they got a bunch of us together to meet with Cheney out in the middle of the desert. That was a "dog & pony show".
Meeting with the president and being able to talk to him would have been very cool.
Tell your friend we are behind him.:cool:

[miller19j]

Originally posted by Catmando
From this post, it is obvious that lurking is what you do best. And yes, Liberals are not "quiet" any more. We're gonna run Chimpy McFlightsuit right out of office in November.:mad: :mad: Get off your soap box and show a little respect! You repeatedly show your ignorance on this board and everyone is getting tired of it.

[Dribble]

Thanks for the post Wes. I sleep well at night knowing that people with the ethics of Bush and Rice are in charge of our national security.
Thanks also to CatmanMichaelMooreDixiechickCommunistdo. Your words of wisdom are inspirational. I am now inspired to go vomit over the bile that you pathetically tried to ruin this thread with.

[Catmando]

Originally posted by miller19j
Get off your soap box and show a little respect! You repeatedly show your ignorance on this board and everyone is getting tired of it.
How can you respect some one who
1) Stole the Oval office
2) Went AWOL from the Texas ANG
3) Let bin Laden get away and just shrugged his shoulders about it
I respect the office, not necessarily the person occupying it at the moment.

[Catmando]

Originally posted by Dribble
...I am now inspired to go vomit over the bile that you pathetically tried to ruin this thread with.
Just let it "dribble" out.:D

[Catmando]

Originally posted by Havasu Cig
...In 91 they got a bunch of us together to meet with Cheney out in the middle of the desert. That was a "dog & pony show".
And so was this one.

[boatnam2]

buddy at works brother is a master sargent in jag first amour and got to spend some time with bush and presented the pres with a coin and recieved a presidential pin.he has some pretty cool pics from the whole deal.good move of old slick willy to send hilary of to the sand to get a time to chace some puss.

[miller19j]

Give me a break! I am not going to address your allegations because they have no merit.
But you Idol Billy Boy Not only let Bin Laden get away he allowed his organization to grow. He disrespected the office of the president by getting sexual favors from a female intern (Any corporation would have fired him for that) and then Lied about it under oath. Do I need to go on.
You new Idol Hillary took days before she showed any interest in NYC after Sept 11. Funny she was the senator for New York at the time. I guess she had more important things to do.
I am pretty sure that you have no clue what respect or respectful means.

[THOR]

Originally posted by miller19j
Get off your soap box and show a little respect! You repeatedly show your ignorance on this board and everyone is getting tired of it.
I second this post by MJ.
Cat, it is hard to believe that someone like yourself can be too ignorant to know when to shut up. I guess that is what makes you ignorant though. Quit being disrespectful. He did a great thing and just be happy for him.

[Dribble]

Cat, you're an idiot. Everyone knows that. Not because of your politics, but because of your arrogance.
You have a right to your opinion and your politics. You don't have a right to hijack someone else's thread and try to turn it around to suit those politics.
As you can (or should) see, you don't have alot of support here.
You never will.

[Dave C]

Cat don't get too upset when Bush is re-elected in a landslide, bro.
BTW I heard that Hillary had to "hitch" a ride to her "photo-op." NO she didn't plan it. Just stuck her thumb out and rode someone else's coattails. Kinda her M.O. just like she rode her husband's coattails right into office, etc. etc.
I also heard that she got a very cold reception from the military once there. AFter all what serviceman in their right mind would want to meet her after the Clinton's constant downsizing of the military during their tenure. Her visit is kind of a slap in the face to military personnel.

[Dave C]

Cat were you referring to Bill Clinton when you said this?
1) Stole the Oval office, (maybe not stole but with 45%, thanks to that spoiler Perot, Didn't W get more votes than Bill?)
2) Went AWOL from the Texas ANG ( Ya Bill draft dodged the Military altogether. Besides AWOL implies not having authorization, which is not what happened.)
3) Let bin Laden get away and just shrugged his shoulders about it (by bombing an aspirin factory and a few tents, WOW what a hard hitting military operation, How many things blew up under his watch again?)
So I am concluding from the foregoing that we will not respect Bill Clinton for doing all the things you mentioned.
:D

[Catmando]

Originally posted by Dave C
Cat don't get too upset when Bush is re-elected in a landslide, bro.
BTW I heard that Hillary had to "hitch" a ride to her "photo-op." NO she didn't plan it. Just stuck her thumb out and rode someone else's coattails. Kinda her M.O. just like she rode her husband's coattails right into office, etc. etc.
I also heard that she got a very cold reception from the military once there. AFter all what serviceman in their right mind would want to meet her after the Clinton's constant downsizing of the military during their tenure. Her visit is kind of a slap in the face to military personnel.
Oh I won't be upset, the CEOs of the companies who make the electronic voting machines are Republicans, and their machines have no paper backup to record votes. Democrats will lose.
As for whose visit is a "slap in the face", Bush went AWOL from the Texas ANG and did NOT return to duty. During wartime(Vietnam). The UCMJ calls that desertion. So do I, I'm a veteran. What do YOU call it?

[hboldno7]

hboldno7 <<<<<<<<< Just sitting here shakin his head...:yuk:

[Dave C]

voting machings. Ha ha. You not supposed to make "excuses" for your loss until after it happens.
What is so hard to understand about this? Bush will win because “actual” people will overwhelmingly vote for him and not as a result of cheating.

[spectra75]

Hey Wes, Thanks for posting that letter. A big "Thank You" to all the patriots.
spectra75

[Froggystyle]

Thanks for the good words guys. About 80% of my close freinds are currently stationed overseas, and are completely in support of their actions.
Catmando... for the last time, get out of my thread. It is disrespectful to me, the freind of mine who sent me this, the freind who wrote this, and all of the servicemen I have forwarded this post to. You are classless, and your "arguments" are not welcome in this thread.
Please feel free to start another thread spewing your sideways political diatribe and see how many fish you hook with your troll.
To all others, I am going to quote for a fifth time this year the most applicable analogy I have heard for the internet argument...
"Never mud-wrestle with a pig. You end up filthy, and the pig likes it..."
Don't even acknowlege this crap he is spewing and it will go away. To respond is to have paid attention.

[Dave C]

AWOL. That is a bunch of B.S.
That implies absent without authorization.
I suppose now your going to tell us (via some left wing nutcase website) that he did not have auhorization.
What a bunch of B.S.
Sorry Wes but I must call a spade a spade. Besides I like the smell of bacon in the morning.;)

[058]

Thanks, Froggy for the post.... I don't want Catmandu to go away. The more he posts the more we see he is just an idiot with some distorted hatred for a man who has morals, firm convictions and has the balls to see them thru. These lame liberals still chanting the same drivel about "stealing" an election, a system BTW that has been in place for the past 220 years so when their boy couldn't manipulate the ballot box [trying to get the military vote thrown out][and by counting and recounting the ballots until they get the numbers they like] So let Catmandu hijack any thread he likes. I enjoy the laughs.

[Jordy]

Great post Wes. ;)

[Freak]

Nice post Frog. Thumbs up.
Catmando your like school on Saturday. NO CLASS!

[Schiada76]

Originally posted by Catmando
Yeah he sneaks into Baghdad in the middle of the night, spends two hours with less than 200 troops, eating turkey at 6AM, only to see that Hillary beat him to the punch!!:D :D
Who woulda thunk it, a Democrat in a war zone.:D :D
**** YOU! Stupid ****ING COCKSUCKER!!!!!!
The troops were ordered to sit with that ****ing SKANK Hitlery.
On the other hand........................Well you're too ****ing stupid to understand.
Move to france ****wad!:mad: :mad: :mad:

[rvrtoy]

Thanks for that post Wes. It is great to know that our Commander and Chief is looked up to and respected by our fighting heros at home and on the front lines.
All those nae sayers around the country and world should learn from information like this. The guys and gals on the front line get why we are over there, why is it so hard for the rest of the world to understand. I just don't get it.:confused:
My hat is off the George Jr. He certainly has my vote....AGAIN!!:D :D

[RexRathburn]

Great post Froggy!
It's good to hear that morale is still high.

[BoatFloating]

Wes, great up-lifting post. You talk about straight from the heart and no hidden agenda, that letter nails it. The letter wasn't for thousands of people to read but now you can see the truth not the left wing newspapers view.
As for our wacko Cat if you don't respond he'll go away. He's looking for the rise out of you, just let him die, don't respond to him no matter how bad you want to. Here's is my reponse to him,
" nothing "

[JakeAisA]

This is my first post. I'm Busti's son, you can call me Busti Jr. Glad to meet you guys, great post. I too have a freind who served in Iraq, was badly injured twice, is still sick from the laced grenade he took, lost 25% of his plattoon...but told me he loves President Bush, the whole military loves Bush and they all know they have to do what they're doing.
My first question is for this pea brain Catmando guy though: Did you graduate highschool? I'm amazed you know how to read.
Answer me this: Why do you hate George Bush? How would you fight terrorism? How are we supposed to deal with a religion and group of animals that cannot be reasoned with, that cannot be bribed, that cannot be appeased, that will stop at nothing until we're all dead and only Muslim Fanatics are left?

[Tremor Therapy]

Froggy,
Thanks for the great post. The holidays are the times the commander in chief should acknowledge our men and women overseas, and being the man he is.....he did just that. It takes some balls to fly into a hostile country and show your military that you care.....and G. Dubb has them, and did just that. Its at times like these that I feel the most proud of our president....whether I agree with his politics or not doesn't matter, his respect for the sacrifices our service men and women are making makes me proud!