Hero or Zero?
Sergeant First Class (E-7) is a U.S. Army rank, and among enlisted personnel, it signifies several things. It is one of the top three enlisted ranks and is considered to be in the group of "senior NCOs". It is the rank held by platoon sergeants, typically the senior enlisted person in a platoon. A Sergeant First Class may actually serve as a platoon leader if there is no officer assigned to the platoon, until one is assigned.
It's usually a sign of accomplishment. You just don't get to be an E-7 without having been good at what you do.
It also means that a soldier who reaches that rank can remain on active duty for up to 29 years. The lower the rank, the less time a soldier can remain on active duty.
There's a guy who reached this rank, one SFC Dillard Johnson. In a new book entitled "Carnivore" he makes some extraordinary claims about his military service. Claims I find totally unbelievable. The subtitle of the tome is "A memoir of one of the Deadliest American Soldiers of All Time" and that's probably not true. The book claims that he had 121 confirmed kills as a sniper, the most of any U.S. Army soldier ever. That's definitely not the case.
But the most ridiculous claim is that he had 2,746 confirmed kills during his time in Iraq. Put that word confirmed in major league quotations because these kills were confirmed by SFC Johnson, himself and he. All three are almost certainly lying.
SFC Johnson left Iraq in 2007. At the time he departed, estimates are that the entire "body count" of all coalition forces was less than 20,000. If his claim were to be true, he'd have personally killed 14% of all militants killed during his time in-country. That stretches even the most flexible shred of credability well beyond the breaking point.
Let's be fair. He did earn a Silver Star. He did command an armored vehicle and his troops describe him as someone who "did great things." But his claims are akin to someone who didn't finish basic military training claiming they made it through SEAL or Ranger training and went on to serve with distinction in the Special Forces.
* * *
Next week is the Fourth of July. There will undoubtedly be a new episode of "As The Assisted Living Facility Turns" that day or the next, especially since the monthly meeting of the Resident's Council will be held on July 3rd. I am probably going to repeat what went on when it was Memorial Day. I'll stay in my room and let them bring me food from the lunch barbecue rather than go down to the madhouse that is the dining room. People will be walking in and out so often it won't be cool there, and the scramble to get a table when both of the scheduled seatings are there at the same time gets old. On the other hand, it would probably be good to put in an appearance. Maybe I will have lunch there.
Like many holidays I think we tend to forget the real importance of the holiday. It becomes a celebration to just celebrate without focusing on what it is we are celebrating. I might have gone to this video on that day but might as well use it now:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-beyMTEBys
Do kids today really study in detail why the colonists sought independence from a nation that taxed them? Because we now have a political party named after the Boston Tea Party, they might know about the Tea Act. They might even know about the Stamp Act. I doubt they're familiar with the Sugar Act. I'm certain they don't know that these acts were illegal under the Bill of Rights of 1689 passed by Parliament in England.
We can't say with any degree of certainty how the nation we live in would look today had those brave men and women chosen to fight for liberty, for freedom from a monarch who saw the colonies only as a cash cow to enrich him. But I can say we are almost certainly better off now than we probably would be, were the lands we live in still colonies and/or territories of Mexico and France.
* * *
Saw my primary care doctor yesterday. I've been assigned to a new one. He's pretty good, and definitely thorough. Everything seems good, except that now I have a vitamin D deficiency. This means yet another drug, because the normal treatment for this is more exposure to sunlight and that runs contrary to the instruction to avoid the heat. How to get sun without being exposed to heat is a riddle I can't solve. One big pill per week for eight weeks and then smaller daily pills. At this point one more pill is meaningless in my mind.
* * *
Items I'm pondering today:
Will the 405 expansion projects that are snarling traffic now really provide any relief to the utter gridlock that exists on that freeway in that area during drive-time?
Who wants to bet that outgoing L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa will try to get a free meal today when he stops at Pink's Hot Dogs during his "farewell bus tour?"
Sharon Osbourne called Kanye West "average looking" and an "average talent." Anyone else think she's just being Kris Jenner's proxy since Kris can say what's on her mind about Kim's baby daddy?
Are people really that dumb? SMPD posted a photo of three persons of interest in an arson and someone wrote in the comments section that the trio didn't "look like arsonists to him." Just what does an arsonist look like?
Why do these kinds of mornings, where traffic accidents bring freeways to a standstill during rush-hour; always happen on a Monday or a Friday?
Did officials at the DMV in an un-named state really ask a woman to go see a doctor and get a pap smear to prove she's female? She went to renew her driver's license and her birth certificate listed her as male. The records people cleared it up by reviewing the birth certificate of her son, which listed her as the mother.
Why do some people object to 66 year old actor James Woods dating a 20 year old woman?
Who had the winning time in the pool on how long it would take before Alec Baldwin melted down on Twitter again? My entry lost about two months ago.
* * *
This Date in History:
On this date in 1098, warriors of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosull.
On this date in 1461, Edward IV is crowned King of England.
On this date in 1519, Charles V becomes Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
On this date in 1776, Thomas Hickey, Continental Army private and bodyguard to General George Washington is hanged for mutiny and sedition.
On this date in 1865, the Army of the Potomac is disbanded.
On this date in 1894, Labor Day becomes an official holiday.
On this date in 1919, the Treaty of Versailles is signed in Paris, officially ending World War I.
On this date in 1950, Seoul is captured by North Korean forces.
On this date in 1969, the Stonewall riots take place, marking the beginning of the Gay Rights Movement.
On this date in 1978, the Supreme Court rules that colleges can't use quota systems in their admissions process in the Bakke case.
On this date in 1994, members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult release sarin gas in Masumoto, Japan. Seven are killed, hundreds injured.
On this date in 1997, Mike Tyson is disqualified in Tyson - Holyfield II, when he bites off part of Evander Holyfield's ear.
Famous Folk Born On This Date:
Pope Paul IV
Henry VIII of England
Henri Lebesque
Pierre Laval
Carl Spaatz
Richard Rodgers
Mel Brooks
Hans Blix
Leon Panetta
Al Downing
Kathy Bates
John Elway
John Cusack
Mary Stuart Masterson (same year as Cusack)
Danielle Brisebois
Kellie Pickler
Movie quotes of the day come from "Blazing Saddles" today, to honor it being the birthday of the incredibly talented Mel Brooks:
[Recalling his gunfighting career]
Jim: I must have killed more men than Cecil B. DeMille.
#2
Bart: I better go check out this Mongo character.
[Bart reaches for his gun]
Jim: Oh no, don't do that, don't do that. If you shoot him, you'll just make him mad.
#3
Jim: [consoling Bart] What did you expect? "Welcome, sonny"? "Make yourself at home"? "Marry my daughter"? You've got to remember that these are just simple farmers. These are people of the land. The common clay of the new West. You know... morons.
It's usually a sign of accomplishment. You just don't get to be an E-7 without having been good at what you do.
It also means that a soldier who reaches that rank can remain on active duty for up to 29 years. The lower the rank, the less time a soldier can remain on active duty.
There's a guy who reached this rank, one SFC Dillard Johnson. In a new book entitled "Carnivore" he makes some extraordinary claims about his military service. Claims I find totally unbelievable. The subtitle of the tome is "A memoir of one of the Deadliest American Soldiers of All Time" and that's probably not true. The book claims that he had 121 confirmed kills as a sniper, the most of any U.S. Army soldier ever. That's definitely not the case.
But the most ridiculous claim is that he had 2,746 confirmed kills during his time in Iraq. Put that word confirmed in major league quotations because these kills were confirmed by SFC Johnson, himself and he. All three are almost certainly lying.
SFC Johnson left Iraq in 2007. At the time he departed, estimates are that the entire "body count" of all coalition forces was less than 20,000. If his claim were to be true, he'd have personally killed 14% of all militants killed during his time in-country. That stretches even the most flexible shred of credability well beyond the breaking point.
Let's be fair. He did earn a Silver Star. He did command an armored vehicle and his troops describe him as someone who "did great things." But his claims are akin to someone who didn't finish basic military training claiming they made it through SEAL or Ranger training and went on to serve with distinction in the Special Forces.
* * *
Next week is the Fourth of July. There will undoubtedly be a new episode of "As The Assisted Living Facility Turns" that day or the next, especially since the monthly meeting of the Resident's Council will be held on July 3rd. I am probably going to repeat what went on when it was Memorial Day. I'll stay in my room and let them bring me food from the lunch barbecue rather than go down to the madhouse that is the dining room. People will be walking in and out so often it won't be cool there, and the scramble to get a table when both of the scheduled seatings are there at the same time gets old. On the other hand, it would probably be good to put in an appearance. Maybe I will have lunch there.
Like many holidays I think we tend to forget the real importance of the holiday. It becomes a celebration to just celebrate without focusing on what it is we are celebrating. I might have gone to this video on that day but might as well use it now:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-beyMTEBys
Do kids today really study in detail why the colonists sought independence from a nation that taxed them? Because we now have a political party named after the Boston Tea Party, they might know about the Tea Act. They might even know about the Stamp Act. I doubt they're familiar with the Sugar Act. I'm certain they don't know that these acts were illegal under the Bill of Rights of 1689 passed by Parliament in England.
We can't say with any degree of certainty how the nation we live in would look today had those brave men and women chosen to fight for liberty, for freedom from a monarch who saw the colonies only as a cash cow to enrich him. But I can say we are almost certainly better off now than we probably would be, were the lands we live in still colonies and/or territories of Mexico and France.
* * *
Saw my primary care doctor yesterday. I've been assigned to a new one. He's pretty good, and definitely thorough. Everything seems good, except that now I have a vitamin D deficiency. This means yet another drug, because the normal treatment for this is more exposure to sunlight and that runs contrary to the instruction to avoid the heat. How to get sun without being exposed to heat is a riddle I can't solve. One big pill per week for eight weeks and then smaller daily pills. At this point one more pill is meaningless in my mind.
* * *
Items I'm pondering today:
Will the 405 expansion projects that are snarling traffic now really provide any relief to the utter gridlock that exists on that freeway in that area during drive-time?
Who wants to bet that outgoing L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa will try to get a free meal today when he stops at Pink's Hot Dogs during his "farewell bus tour?"
Sharon Osbourne called Kanye West "average looking" and an "average talent." Anyone else think she's just being Kris Jenner's proxy since Kris can say what's on her mind about Kim's baby daddy?
Are people really that dumb? SMPD posted a photo of three persons of interest in an arson and someone wrote in the comments section that the trio didn't "look like arsonists to him." Just what does an arsonist look like?
Why do these kinds of mornings, where traffic accidents bring freeways to a standstill during rush-hour; always happen on a Monday or a Friday?
Did officials at the DMV in an un-named state really ask a woman to go see a doctor and get a pap smear to prove she's female? She went to renew her driver's license and her birth certificate listed her as male. The records people cleared it up by reviewing the birth certificate of her son, which listed her as the mother.
Why do some people object to 66 year old actor James Woods dating a 20 year old woman?
Who had the winning time in the pool on how long it would take before Alec Baldwin melted down on Twitter again? My entry lost about two months ago.
* * *
This Date in History:
On this date in 1098, warriors of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosull.
On this date in 1461, Edward IV is crowned King of England.
On this date in 1519, Charles V becomes Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
On this date in 1776, Thomas Hickey, Continental Army private and bodyguard to General George Washington is hanged for mutiny and sedition.
On this date in 1865, the Army of the Potomac is disbanded.
On this date in 1894, Labor Day becomes an official holiday.
On this date in 1919, the Treaty of Versailles is signed in Paris, officially ending World War I.
On this date in 1950, Seoul is captured by North Korean forces.
On this date in 1969, the Stonewall riots take place, marking the beginning of the Gay Rights Movement.
On this date in 1978, the Supreme Court rules that colleges can't use quota systems in their admissions process in the Bakke case.
On this date in 1994, members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult release sarin gas in Masumoto, Japan. Seven are killed, hundreds injured.
On this date in 1997, Mike Tyson is disqualified in Tyson - Holyfield II, when he bites off part of Evander Holyfield's ear.
Famous Folk Born On This Date:
Pope Paul IV
Henry VIII of England
Henri Lebesque
Pierre Laval
Carl Spaatz
Richard Rodgers
Mel Brooks
Hans Blix
Leon Panetta
Al Downing
Kathy Bates
John Elway
John Cusack
Mary Stuart Masterson (same year as Cusack)
Danielle Brisebois
Kellie Pickler
Movie quotes of the day come from "Blazing Saddles" today, to honor it being the birthday of the incredibly talented Mel Brooks:
[Recalling his gunfighting career]
Jim: I must have killed more men than Cecil B. DeMille.
#2
Bart: I better go check out this Mongo character.
[Bart reaches for his gun]
Jim: Oh no, don't do that, don't do that. If you shoot him, you'll just make him mad.
#3
Jim: [consoling Bart] What did you expect? "Welcome, sonny"? "Make yourself at home"? "Marry my daughter"? You've got to remember that these are just simple farmers. These are people of the land. The common clay of the new West. You know... morons.
posted by me at 7:49 AM
<< Home