 |
| Marine Aviators: John Glenn, Ted Williams, Jerry Coleman |
When Senator Glenn passed away in December of 2016, I felt he deserved a spot up on the masthead. In truth, he represents all of the American men and women who have gone into space, pushing back that final frontier.
Yes, he became a politician, a Democrat no less, but I still respected the man and his accomplshments. No list of American heroes would be complete without him.
Ted Williams and Jerry Coleman went up on the masthead back in March of 2016, I wrote quite a bit about that here. (Joe Foss went up on the masthead around that time as well, and I wrote about him in that same post. But I'm going to mention him again when we get to the Medal of Honor holders, officer category, later on. Yes, there's a separate category for the enlisted MoH holders. Note that I didn't say MoH "winners." It isn't a prize, most of those who have been awarded that medal were dead when the medal was awarded.)
I also mentioned Ted and Jerry the other day, so I don't feel the need to go into any more detail on that. Suffice to say, both men impressed me enough to make the header.
This series of posts, for those who are wondering, will eventually be combined into one big post which will have its very own page (over on the sidebar) for those of you who like to keep track of such things. Also a good place to refer the newbies when they pose the question of who are those folks up there? Why are they up there?
I'm still mulling over Beans' idea of the Hall of Heroes, again a separate page over on the sidebar. For those who access the blog with a smart phone, you need to go to "View web version." which is what the Android calls it, Lord knows what the iPhone calls it. We no longer have one in the house. I'm tempted to call that page Valhalla. But some of the folks in the Hall of Heroes are still alive, so no go on that thought. (I just finished the latest season of Vikings on Amazon, hence the Valhalla reference.)
The eyeball surgery has not been scheduled yet, though I have given Doc One the "go" sign. That will no doubt occur within the next couple of months. But not mid-October as my Mom's birthday is in that region. Also I hear tell that Juvat will be in my AO during that time frame. As we have never met in person, I don't wish to miss that. (Tuna has been in my AO more than once, I've been in his. We've met multiple times.)
So as I mentioned yesterday, posts are gonna be short in nature for a while. My morale is high, it's not that I'm antsy about the surgery (much), I am kinda short on material and I'm not ready to
Remember, I'm trying to learn how to play the drums as well. Renaissance Man, that's me.
Kinda, sorta.
Met and talked with Jerry Coleman a couple of times. We received our Wings of Gold exactly 30 years apart.
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome. He was a broadcaster for the Padres right?
DeleteDavid McCampbell can have a spot here!
ReplyDeleteIn the Hall of Heroes? For sure.
DeleteThanks for starting to show us the inner workings of your brain, I mean why you admire those folks on the top. It does help those who don't want to peruse 6 years of posts.
ReplyDeleteAs to Valhalla, well, not all heroes went to Valhalla, some went to Thor's Hall Bilskirnir and some went to Freyja's field Fólkvangr (percentages vary due to which saga and story and interpretation one is reading at the moment. As long as one doesn't end up in boring old Hel where Hel lives and no one else does, well, that's okay. (Hel (one L) is where all the boring deaths like starvation, old age, disease, non-heroic battle deaths (septic gut etc) and non-heroic non-battle deaths (everyday life) go, unless one is really bad, then we wouldn't be talking about them on the header, now, would we?
Hall of Heroes or Hall of Remembrances, though we talk about live people all the time, so Hall of Heroes. Maybe a side chapel or wing to each service or war, depending on how your (OldAFS's) mind bends around the concept. After all, it is your circus (see, sometimes a little knowledge is a dangerous thing...)
Now that I have finished my nefarious project (curling mustache like Snidley Whiplash, hur-hur-hur,) I will start re-reading and cataloguing all the various and sundry things and people and books, did you know practically every post seems to have suggestions of books in the post or in the comments? And other stuffs that have been bloviated hereabouts. So, I will keep you (and youse three oda riters) and y'all out there posted on the progress of that fun trip down Memory Lane, to Memory Road, to the Memory section of the Eisenhower Federal Highway system.
I will also diligently collect all the acronyms and compare and contrast them as there are some acronyms that are missing, maybe, potentially. So well, LOL. SJC. And all that.
I'll stick with Valhalla, poets are notorious for MSU (Making Shit Up) to tell a good story. Not saying I've ever done that, MSU isn't my shtick really, I'm an embellisher at times certainly, but MSU? I'll leave that to the poets. (MSU, poetic license, same-same GI.)
DeleteAs to the way my mind works, if you can figure that out, let me know. I'm keen to understand the way I do things, as is The Missus Herself.
I'm also keen to see/experience/be horrified by, the results of your recent labors in the Augean Stables, er, the Chant's old posts.
Different wings for the Hall of Heroes, I like the concept. Hartmann, Voss, Richthofen and others of their ilk still have a chance of being commemorated in these spaces.
Well, Valhalla is where the greatful dead get to eat and drink being served by Odin's Valkyrie. Bilskirnir is basically the same, but with Thor (the party animal) rather than Odin (who can see thoughts). As to Freyja's fields, well, she's a babe, a serious babe, an elvin babe (no, not Galadriel, but, well, a Hooter's girl who likes to party). And all the other 'good' gods in Asgard had their own collections of heroes in preparation for Ragnarok, so choose your 'god' for whatever party aspect that 'god' exhibits and most attracts one...
DeleteMSU, yet another acronym. And you said 'Shit(e).' What will juvat's tender ears do with you cussing like a sailor?
The Hall (and wings) should have at least the name and a link to the post(s) where the person is talked about. May have to do a whole separate facility for the Affaires du Corse, IYKWIM.
I like the way you think.
DeleteWhat, randomly, like a ferret on speed chasing multiple balls in a giant pachinko machine? It's what I do.
DeleteExactly.
DeleteSeeing Coleman's plane and the rivets reminded me of the shock and horror of the team that investigated the Mig25 that was flown to Japan by a defector back in the 80's. Supposedly the hottest thing in the air at the time and the investigators were complaining that the damned thing was riveted together.
ReplyDeleteYes. the MiG-25 that Belenko defected to Japan in was really primitive compared to Western technology. But like most Russian designs, it was effective, crude but effective. I recall reading somewhere that the Russian jets have to have their engines replaced at very short intervals, they tend to wear our very quickly.
DeleteBut when the idea is to overwhelm the enemy with numbers, regardless of losses, quantity has a quality all its own. (Might have been Stalin who said that...)
Sarge, it bugs me, too, when I hear of MoH (or any other valor medal) "winners". It ain't The Price Is Right out there where these heroes performed the deeds for which they are recognized.
ReplyDeleteA buddy made me laugh once when he was in uniform and a civilian saw his Purple Heart (and knew what it was), and asked about his 'winning the Purple Heart'. My buddy replied "It's an Enemy Marksmanship Medal, and I'm just wearing it; the dude who won it is the one who shot me!" Yes, the man has style.
--Tennessee Budd
Heh, I really like your buddy's answer.
Delete