POST V3.07-04-09

MILSPEAK MEMO
V3.07-04-09
INDEPENDENCE DAY
A HOLIDAY COMMEMORATING THE SIGNING OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS IN CIVILIZATION BECAUSE IT MARKS THE BIRTH OF A NATION - THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

hen in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. (MORE>>>
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMERICA!

THE ACCOUNT OF THE DECLARATION
JEFFERSON’S STORY OF THE DECLARATION

THE FATES OF THE SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION
BY ANONYMOUS

BLAST OF A LIFETIME
MEMOIR BY TED CORBETT, MARINE

WOMEN IN COMBAT
ESSAY BY TAMARA PARKER, MARINE

collected fiction, military themed
edited by jeffery hess
Features 24 moving stories that relate to the military. Many critically acclaimed as well as emerging authors are included here (many of whom have served in the military themselves) including Kurt Vonnegut, Tim O’Brien, Tobias Wolff, James Salter, Pinckney Benedict, Chris Offutt, Robert O’Connor, Gabe Hudson, Benjamin Percy, Amber Dermont, Roman Skaskiw, Zoey Byrd, Valerie Hamilton, Blaise Weller, Sarah Davis, Mary Akers, Tracy Crow, Kevin Jones, Hannah Huber, Bruce Overby, Peter Schilling, Tom Sheehan, Doug Frelke, and Max Ruback.

(Hey Jeff! Thanks for being my reader! Both Jeff Hess and Dennis Adams served as readers for the Milspeak anthology. Both did their best to catch my errors and straighten out my syntax. So here’s the deal - whoever out there reads the Milspeak anthology and finds grammatical errors, please send me a list. The reader who finds the most errors by August 15 will win a secret and special prize! --Pirate)

VIET NAM WAR TROOP SHIP GRAFFITI
A PROJECT TO IDENTIFY GRAFFITI ARTISTS! AWESOME VIDEO, AUDIO & IMAGES !

Soldiers Say Goodbye to Orphans Friday, 03 July 2009 By Sgt. 1st Class Joe Thompson for MNF NEWSLETTER  Multi-National Division-South

FIREFIGHT IN KORENGAL VALLEY
VIDEO COURTESY OF MNF NEWSLETTER

U.S. PUSHES INTO TALIBAN STRONGHOLDS U.S. Marines launched a pre-dawn mission in Afghanistan's volatile Helmand province in an effort to wrest control of the area from Taliban insurgents.
photo essay courtesy of the washington post
hold them safe in victory
(U.S. Marine Corps photo by Chief Warrant Officer 3 Philippe E. Chasse/Released)

“YOU MAKE ME PROUD”
PIRATE RIFFS ON INDEPENDENCE AND DECLARATIONS

ONE VETERAN HONORS OTHER VETERANS
AN ANECDOTE FROM YVETTE CLIFFORD, MARINE

“INDEPENDENCE DAY”
BY
BRIAN “DIRTY” DINGESS
Art by Brian D. Dingess
Fights On! Aviation Art
Brian Dingess - Artist Bio

Brian Dingess grew up at the flight lines of Marine Corps Air Station El Toro during the 60s and 70s. His father, Gunnery Sergeant Calvin Dingess was flight line chief for A-4 Squadrons VMA-311 and 211. Given paper and pencil and told to sit on the flight line and draw (with ear plugs – Mickey Mouse ears), his dad went about his flight line business, and Brian learned details of attack, fighter and reconnaissance jets and how to draw them - later being designated a Air Combat Illustrator. After many years of observation and 23 years of service to the Marine Corps, LtCol Brian Dingess began producing personal sketches for friends who were aircrew. LtCol Dingess’ career as an Air Defense Control Officer placed him in direct contact with Marine Corps and Joint fighter aviation where he controlled Air Combat Maneuvering fighters for over 2500 intercepts during tours in Hawaii - Kaneohe, Okinawa, West and East Coasts – Fighter stations at Miramar, El Toro and Beaufort. Brian supported fighter aviation as a fighter controller for TOPGUN, RED FLAG, COPE THUNDER and Marine Corps Air Combat Training Courses. Sketch projects include: VMFA-333 MiG-21 shoot down by Maj “Bear’ Lasseter and Capt “L’ll John” Cummings published by Michael O’Conner in the Book “MiG Killers of Yankee Station” and accepted by the Marine Aviation Art Museum Achives; VMFA-323 Squadron history 1944-1994; Heritage – Death Rattler VMA-323 Korea (Corsair AU-1 with Colonel Jerry Coleman (Yankees and Padres Professional Baseball Player/Announcer)) and Present VMFA-323 (F/A-18C Death Rattler); Published “Year 2000 Fighter Fever” Calendar; and donated drawings to the Naval Fighter Weapons School – TOPGUN, the RAND Corporation and MAG-31 Beaufort SC for display. After retiring from the Marine Corps in 2000, Brian began to research the history of the F-4 Phantom II and now has completed a set of USMC F-4 Phantom sketches – one - from each of the 25 Active and Reserve squadrons spanning the 1960s through 1980s depicting the Marine F-4s in Combat and Training conditions. Upcoming projects include: Carrier Aviation, Heritage flight depictions of different era aircraft in formation, Marine Corps Command and Control radar sites. These projects can be found on website: www.fightsonaviationart.com. Brian can be reached at Fightsonart@sbcglobal.net.

PLUS
MONKEY MAGIC

END OF POST
BE SAFE!