Tough warriors

[Flyin6]

You wouldn't know it to look at him, but the little old man in the center of this photo was one of the toughest Jarheads ever.
In 1942 when he was only 14, Jacklyn "Jack" Lucas enlisted in the Marine Corps after convincing the recruiter he was 17.
Posted to a depot unit at Pearl Harbor, Jack was bored and wanted action, so in January of 1945, he rolled up a combat uniform under his arm, sneaked out of camp, and stowed away aboard a Naval Transport that was taking 1st Battalion, 26th Marines, 5th Marine Division to Iwo Jima.
Not knowing what to do with him, the Marine battalion commander busted Jack one rank, then assigned him as rifleman to C Company. A few days later, Jack turned 17.*
The day after landing on Iwo Jima, Jack dove on top of one Japanese grenade then pulled another beneath him. The blast ripped through his body, but saved his comrades.
It took 21 surgeries to save him, and for the rest of his life carried in his body more than 200 large pieces of shrapnel.
On October 5th, 1945, Jack Lucas received the Medal of Honor from President Harry Truman in a ceremony on the White House lawn. He is the youngest Marine ever to receive the nation's highest honor.
He then returned to high school.... as a freshman.
After college, Jack entered the Army as a Captain in the 82nd Airborne, and survived a training jump in which neither his main chute nor his reserve chute opened.
Two years before he died in 2008, Jack was honored by the Commandant of the Marine Corps, General Michael W. Hagee, who presented him with a Medal of Honor ceremonial flag at the Marine Barracks in Washington, D.C.
It was during that ceremony that this photo was taken.
Semper Fidelis.

[Flyin6]

In April of 2006, Navy Seal Senior Chief Mike Day was shot 27 times by terrorists with AK47, 9MM, and .556 Green Tips taken from a deceased U.S. Green Beret. Shot everywhere on his body but his head; his M4 rifle shot out of his hands, he continued to fight with his Sig 9MM pistol after the pistol grips and his thumb were shot off. With that handleless pistol, he killed the three remaining bad guys... then he walked himself to the Med-Evac helicopter.
Professional athletes shouldn’t be revered as heroes, men like this should be.

[Flyin6]

USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr DD 850

19 February 1945: The US loses Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone

John was serving as a machine gun section leader on Red Beach II, during the first day of the invasion of Iwo Jima. While the Marines landed, the Japanese concentrated their fire at the incoming Marines from heavily fortified blockhouses staged throughout the island. With his unit pinned down, Basilone made his way around the side of the Japanese positions until he was directly on top of the blockhouse. He then attacked with grenades and demolitions, single-handedly destroying the entire strong point and its defending garrison.

He then fought his way toward Airfield Number 1 and aided a Marine tank that was trapped in an enemy mine field under intense mortar and artillery barrages. He guided the heavy vehicle over the hazardous terrain to safety, despite heavy weapons fire from the Japanese. As he moved along the edge of the airfield, he was killed by Japanese mortar shrapnel

His actions helped Marines penetrate the Japanese defense and get off the landing beach during the critical early stages of the invasion. Basilone was posthumously awarded the Marine Corps' second-highest decoration for valor, the Navy Cross, for extraordinary heroism during the battle of Iwo Jima; having already been awarded the Medal of Honor for his efforts on Guadalcanal.

Gearing-class destroyer USS Basilone DD-824 would be named in his honor and much of this destroyer is proudly aboard USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr as part of 850s restoration.

A second destroyer, USS John Basilone (DDG-122), has been laid down to honor John

[Flyin6]

During the battle for Hue City in February 1968, Staff Sergeant Clifford Sims led his squad against fortified enemy positions in a tree line. His squad came across a burning building. Sims realized it was filled with ammo at risk of exploding. He quickly moved his squad back as the structure exploded. Two of his soldiers were injured, but none killed in the blast. As they continued through the woods, Sims triggered a booby-trapped explosive. With his squad all around him, Sims shouted for his men to take cover and unhesitatingly threw himself on the device. He absorbed explosion, sacrificing his life to save his squad. For his incredible heroism and selfless actions, Sims was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

[Flyin6]

Remember the guy who wouldn't take the flag pole down on his Virginia property awhile back? You might remember the news story several months ago about a crotchety old man in Virginia who defied his local Homeowners Association and refused to take down the flag pole on his property along with the large American flag he flew on it.
Now we learn who that man was. On June 15, 1919, Van T. Barfoot was born in Edinburg, Texas . That probably didn't make news back then.
But twenty five years later, on May 23, 1944, near Cyrano, Italy, That same Van T. Barfoot, who had in 1940 enlisted in the U.S. Army, set out alone to flank German machine gun positions from which gunfire was raining down on his fellow soldiers. His advance took him through a minefield but having done so, he proceeded to single-handedly take out three enemy machine gun positions, returning with 17 prisoners of war.
And if that weren’t enough for a day's work, he later took on and destroyed three German tanks sent to retake the machine gun positions.
That probably didn’t make much news either, given the scope of the war, but it did earn Van T. Barfoot, who retired as a Colonel after also serving In Korea and Vietnam , a well deserved Congressional Medal of Honor.
What did make news was his Neighborhood Association's quibble with how the 90-year-old Veteran chose to fly the American flag outside his suburban Virginia home. Seems the HOA rules said it was OK to fly a flag on a house-mounted bracket, but, for decorum, items such as Barfoot's 21-foot
flagpole were "unsuitable".
Van Barfoot had been denied a permit for the pole, but erected it anyway and was facing Court action unless he agreed to take it down.
Then the HOA story made national TV, and the Neighborhood Association rethought its position and agreed to indulge this aging hero who dwelt among them.
"In the timeI have left", he said to the Associated Press, "I plan to continue to fly the American flag without interference."
As well he should. And if any of his neighbors had taken a notion to contest him further, they might have done well to read his Medal of Honor citation first. Seems it Indicates Mr. Van Barfoot wasn't particularly good at backing down.
If you've read this post and don't share it, - Guess what -You need your butt kicked. I share this with you because I don't want MY butt kicked anymore and I'm tired of seeing those who hate our country march in our streets, tear down our statues, burn our stores, loot our businesses and have a free hand to do whatever they want.
WE ONLY LIVE IN THE LAND OF THE FREE BECAUSE OF THE BRAVE AND BECAUSE OF BRAVE MEN LIKE VAN BARFOOT!