Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Afghanistan Through My Eyes - Jacksonville hero Sgt. Clint Campbell

Looking for some good news surrounding Afghanistan it appears Sgt. Clint Campbell, just became a local hero. On January 18th, Tech. Sgt. Clint Campbell received the Silver Star for gallantry in battle on August 4, 2010.

The citation states: "His bravery in the face of withering enemy fire turned the tide of the battle, defeated the ambush and saved three teammates' lives and prevented certain additional casualties."

Read more:

Congratulations Sgt. Campbell. Our troops are still over in Afghanistan fighting for their lives and the lives of others and their freedom against the Taliban. We must still keep them in our hearts for as long as they are there.

It doesn't matter what your politics are. They are there now. Let's not forget that and let's honor them when they come home.

I was also happy to hear on NPR this morning that 40% of the Veterans that return to Florida find jobs. It should be 100%, but given the economy, this is a pretty good figure.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Afghanistan Through My Eyes - Is there any good news about Afghanistan

I'm still working on my final embed into Afghanistan. It is going to be more difficult as rules have changed and it takes a lot more time. I probably should have begun this sooner, but I was relying on past experience. I am hoping I get in because I still have a lot of soldiers to meet and talk too.

While waiting I am looking for some good news about Afghanistan. While not great news, I found an interesting article regarding Polio and it's resurgence in Afghanistan. Apparently, polio is only found in Afghanistan...it was almost completely eradicated.

The irony is Karzai is blaming the Taliban for not allowing children to be vaccinated, but this is untrue according to the Taliban. In fact the children carry notes saying they are allowed to be vaccinated.

It's a great article. Polio on the rise

There is a small grain of good news here...you just have to look between the folds of hatred.