Military Veterans Thread

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I am a Marine. Served for a decade as an NCO in an 81mm Mortar Platoon with 2nd Bn, 8th Marines, and the 2nd half of my career as a Marine Infantry Officer with 1st Bn, 3rd Marines in Hawaii. Semper Fi and thank you to all of our veterans.
 
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My Father was a career USAF veteran and retired as a Chief Master Sergeant. I was born in Germany during one of his deployments. He was a logistician and worked for the Defense Communication Agency in Arlington upon his return to the States and stayed there as a GS’er after completing his active duty.
 
My dad was a career Naval Officer which made me a Navy brat. He actually quit high school at age 17, enlisted in the Navy in 1950, got out after four years, finished high school, sold insurance for a short while, then went to OCS emerging as an Ensign. We were stationed in Japan in 1961-1963 as he was stationed on the USS Westchester County. Below is a photo of me in the summer of 1962 or 1963. I was six or seven. That's my sister, age three or four. On a clear day, I could see Mt Fuji from my bedroom window. The houses in the background were Japanese, made of concrete, and built to withstand typhoons and earthquakes. Seventeen-eighteen years earlier, we had dropped two atomic bombs on them.

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In June, 1967, my father was on a Liberty ship called the USS Liberty. It's home port was Little Creek Naval Station in Norfolk, but it was sent to the Med on one particular cruise that summer. The ship was attacked in international waters by the defense forces of Israel. 34 dead, 171 wounded. A rocket fragment shattered his femur and he was in a body cast for six months. There was a press/media cover up, and so most Americans don't remember or don't know of the story. The surviving crew believes the Israeli attack on their US Navy ship was premeditated and deliberate.

In January 1968, another Liberty ship, the USS Pueblo was attacked in international waters and captured by North Korea. The crew was held 11 months. Most Americans have heard of or know of this story.

The liberty ship program was terminated after the USS Pueblo incident.

We lived in Germany for three years, 1968-1971.

I joined the Navy out of high school, 1975. Flew to Great Lakes Naval Training Center on the same day my classmates were in their caps and gowns.

Went to "A" school in Pensacola at NTTC Corry Station, not far from NAS Pensacola where Roger Staubach played ball as a young officer in the late 60s.

Shipped out to Hanza Okinawa. We were actually on a US Army base called Torii Station. The Hanza facility was offsite a few miles away. Also did TAD on the USS Juneau.

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God bless all of our troops who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country and the freedoms that we enjoy on a daily basis
 
This is the front page of the WP yesterday, June 6th. See photo above the fold. Five veterans who fought in France. Their message: "Freedom is worth defending."

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US Army 82nd Airborne Division 1997 - 2005.
1 Tour Afghanistan (Active Duty)
2 tours Iraq (Active duty)

After getting out, I went to work for the Navy (2005 - 2017) as a DOD Civilian doing Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD). The deployments to Iraq snd Afghanistan (10 of them) were much shorter (only 4 months at a time), but they set me up for my current position in the USSS.

My hats off to all of my fellow veterans. It is a brotherhood like no other.
 
USAF, Air Traffic Controller. Retired as a SMSgt after 22 years, 84 to 06. The ride took me to 29 different countries.

Did 2 years with the FBI after I retired, then did another 16 with the FAA as a controller.

Forty years was enough. I do what I want these days, which is mainly smoking cigars and selling antiques.
 
Airborneskins said:
US Army 82nd Airborne Division 1997 - 2005.
1 Tour Afghanistan (Active Duty)
2 tours Iraq (Active duty)

After getting out, I went to work for the Navy (2005 - 2017) as a DOD Civilian doing Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD). The deployments to Iraq snd Afghanistan (10 of them) were much shorter (only 4 months at a time), but they set me up for my current position in the USSS.

My hats off to all of my fellow veterans. It is a brotherhood like no other.
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Hey, my grandfather was 82nd Airborne too, during WW2 1944-45 in Belgium. He survived that but his feet didn't really work right anymore. Still came back in one piece and had 5 kids. He lost a lung too but I never did get the story on that. He smoked a couple packs of pall malls a day until he died anyway. Somehow made it to his mid 70s.

At 18 I joined the Navy as an ETNuke but ended up being a regular electronic tech and over 20 years worked on just about everything there is. ET also means everything tech so we might fix a radar, build customized computer systems or repair a laptop or a microwave oven lol. Been just about everywhere except Antarctica too.
 
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Mark, good see you posting again after all these years (before Snyder destroyed the team). If you do not recall we had met up in Seattle at your tailgate for Gibbs last game that happened to be a playoff game and again a FEDEX during tailgates and you also hooked me up with a Rock Cartwright game worn Jersey.

I had no idea your dad was on the USS Liberty, let alone during the attack. I had the privilege of meeting the CO of the Liberty during the attack, CDR William L. McGongle at San Diego Naval Station 32nd ST (dry side) back in the late 1980's when the brand new Vertical Launch System (VLS) Missile Systems Training building was named in his honor. CDR McGongle was awarded the Medal of Honor for keeping that ship afloat. All those men who served on that ship were true heroes!!

Am a glad your dad survived the brutal and unneccessary attack!!. I have read every book and watched every documentary about that travesty that I could find and you are spot on. I was deliberate by Isreal at the time of the 6 day war. It was also very able to get mitigated easily from nearby fighters from the USS Saratogo that were called off by orders under President Johnson.

You are also correct abouth the coverage of it by the press, it was a coverup, for what reason I have no clue. It truly baffles me since the US was on Isreal's side for that war and the ship had insufficient weapons to defend itself from air and sea attacks. that it encountered.
 
The Liberty Incident never made any sense. WTF was Israel thinking?
 
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