March 8, 2006 [LINK]

Our "Man in the Sand"

Even if some of our leading pundits are growing weary of protracted conflict, our troops are made of stronger stuff than most civilians, thankfully. I'm proud to say I know one of them who was recently deployed to Iraq: Sgt. Herb Harman, who volunteered for active duty in the Army soon after the 9/11 attacks. I met Herb and his wife Jan at the local Republican headquarters during the 2004 fall campaign, and enjoyed some interesting conversations. Herb is not just a great guy, he knows a great deal about this country's political system and heritage. We held a send-off dinner for him last October, which was covered by WHSV-TV3. I recently received a letter from Herb, and even though his unit is quartered in very Spartan conditions, he is very enthusiastic about his mission of helping to build a new democratic government in Iraq. For obvious security reasons, he can't go into detail, which reminds us why we often don't hear as much of the good news from Iraq as we would like. It's an incredibly difficult, sensitive, and vital task, but as far as Herb is concerned, he's just doing his job. We are so incredibly lucky to have guys like him serving our country, defending freedom and laying the groundwork for a more peaceful future in the Middle East.

Steve Kijak has some photos of signs that are being put up around the county in Herb's honor. Steve is also arranging for a "Goodwill" package campaign for all the lonely U.S. soldiers who are not so fortunate to have close friends and family back home. (Web site pending.)

Carrier fleet cutback?

The Navy recently announced the retirement of its F-14 "Tomcat" fleet, and now it is proposing to reduce its fleet of carriers from twelve to ten. It probably makes sense, given that there is only one part of the world where we might have to engage a enemy force with advanced weaponry -- and it's not in Europe. See strategypage.com; hat tip to Chris Green.