Ground this!

God knows I’m always Penn State proud (by the way, all you Buckeyes punks fans, Coach JoePa will be on this weekend’s Radio Free Threedonia, and he welcomes your call-in questions), so in light of Rich’s fighter planes post, thought I’d share this story from Happy Valley with y’all.

91-year-old pilot still takes flight, designs planes
Bill [...]

Band of Brothers

I knew this kid (my sister knew them much better) when he was knee high to a grasshopper (and his older brother) — would not have pegged them for this back then or even up until into junior high. I guess it’s called growing up for a reason.

Top Five: WWII Fighters That Are Not The P-51

The Mustang was so undoubtedly the best all-around fighter in World War II that there is virtually no debate on the matter. But the next five? That can be debated. There’s a lot of ways to judge WWII fighters. In this case, I’m going with the “all around” criteria. That means judging the machine’s overall [...]

Classic Pick O' the Day: March 11

Rescue Dawn (2006)
A US Fighter pilot’s epic struggle of survival after being shot down on a mission over Laos during the Vietnam War. Christian Bale, Steve Zahn. Directed by Werner Herzog. Sundance Channel. 9:00 PM EST (and again at 3:15 AM EST).

This is obviously a new one, but is and will remain [...]

No Quarter Given!

In today’s Texas history class students we find that on this date in 1836 the Alamo fell to the Mexican Army. For 13 days between 100-150 Texicans held out against the onslaught of over 1500 Mexican soldiers under the command of General Santa Anna. The battle became a rallying point for the Texas [...]

Thursday Open Thread

149 years ago today — Lincoln’s First Inauguration:

This country, with its institutions, belongs to the people who inhabit it. Whenever they shall grow weary of the existing Government, they can exercise their constitutional right of amending it or their revolutionary right to dismember or overthrow it. I can not be ignorant of the fact that [...]

Your Tax Dollars At Work

What Soldiers do during their downtime…

Be glad they are throwing out the trash!

Happy Independence Day!

Since none of you heathens mentioned it, allow me to remember that TODAY is TEXAS INDEPENDENCE DAY!

To be honest if I wasn’t reminded by 67 Cougar I would have forgotten. Not much of an excuse I know but I was supervising 3 attack weapons teams flight operations over Iraq, so I nearly jacked it [...]

More People You've Probably Never Heard Of

David Bellavia visits a theme I have discussed here once or twice. The real heroes this nation produces and how we never hear of them or celebrate their stories.

This is the story of Melvin Brown

…PFC Brown was nineteen-years old in 1950. Rosy cheeks and bright eyes. From my assessment of his pictures he barely [...]

A Time To Reflect

It’s been a busy week at the day job herebouts, so I hope y’all have been having fun. A bit of sad news is Trzupr-land yesterday: the family lost another member, my Uncle Wiz who was a World War II vet and all around good guy. For me, Wiz was one of those relatives that [...]

SGT Brooks visits the White House

From the blog of David Bellavia comes this story about a SGT from the Mississippi National Guard and the President of the United States of America.

Together we made our way to the White House for breakfast in the Rose Garden with the Bush. Well, I was walking. Brooks was rolling.

Sergeant William “Bill” Brooks joined the [...]

Tuesday Open Thread

Burning of the frigate USS Philadelphia in Tripoli Harbor, Feb. 16, 1804 by Edward Moran

Fighter Pilot, Robin Olds

If you have ever been curious about what a real no-shit fighter pilot is like, that was Robin Olds.

He passed away in June of 2007 but his spirit and legend continue on.

In April his biography will be released he was writing it when he passed…it should be awesome

Get all the info HERE. You can [...]

Who Dat Who Owns “Who Dat”?

Who Dat?

Apparently there is a bit of a ruckus over who owns the rights to print the words “Who Dat?” on a t-shirt.

LA Senator David Vitter claims that the city of New Orleans owns that phrase

The NFL is trying to stop a local T-Shirt vendor from making shirts with the phrase saying the Aints [...]

02/02/2007 RIP Keith and Jason

Three years ago today, two members of my unit were lost while flying a combat mission in Iraq. Caught in an ADA ambush with an aircraft so damaged that by “the book” they should have landed right there, they chose to fight their attackers. Ultimately Keith and Jason’s aircraft finally succumbed to its [...]

What A Hero Really Is…

H/T The Jawa Report

Wednesday Open Thread

The crew of Apollo 1: Edward White, Gus Grissom, Robert Chaffee, R.I.P.

The New Miss England

From The Jawa Report

A soldier who has served in Iraq has been officially crowned Miss England after the original winner relinquished the title last year to clear her name.

Congrats to L/Cpl Katrina Hodge! Jawa has a link to a bikini video if you are at all interested.

Yeah, I’m back in Iraq for those who [...]

On This Day In History

From GrEaT sAtAn”S gIrLfRiEnD

“On 26 January 1945, 2d Lt. Murphy commanded Company B, which was attacked by 6 tanks and waves of infantry. 2d Lt. Murphy ordered his men to withdraw to prepared positions in a woods, while he remained forward at his command post and continued to give fire directions to the artillery by [...]

Duty – Honor – Country

Kit was kind enough to forward the link to the above – many thanks K!

The W/Dark Knight comparison has been made on these pages many times before, but the above sums it up very nicely. Like many a conservative, the biggest problem that I had with W was his refusal to [...]

More on the Trijicon Code

David Bellavia has entered the fray and gives up his two cents regarding “secret bible codes” and weapons parts.

Here’s some of David’s thoughts on the matter:

Their (Trijicon) company mission is on their website:

We believe that America is great when its people are good. This goodness has been based on Biblical standards throughout our history, and [...]

Monday Open Thread

Send in the Marines

USNS Comfort – 70,000 tons of rescue on the way

Actually, send in everybody. The awesome, professional, dedicated men and women of the armed services are – even now – doing what they do best: helping out a poor, bedraggled nation under attack. The fact that Haiti was attacked by a seismic fault, rather [...]

A Class Act

From BLACKFIVE

A gentleman who goes by Laughing Wolf over at the website BLACKFIVE posted about a sub-species in Hollywood that is getting more rare by the day…The Class Act.

New Blog on the Block

If you’ve never read the book “House to House” by David Bellavia, go out buy it and read it right now. Better yet buy two and give one to someone who needs it.

David Bellavia was a SSG in the US Army and served in the second battle of Falluajh during OIF 02, in late [...]

Texan of the Year

We often complain loud and long about how “the media” never gets it right. About how they are willing to be toadies for things most of us don’t believe in.

Well, when they do get something right I think we need to take notice and reward them for a job well done.

The Dallas Morning News [...]

Sometimes You Just Have To Shake Your Head

and ask how did we get here, my God what have (WE) done. At least a thinking person would do that.

This is a must read from The Mudville Gazette

February, 2009: the newly-sworn in President of the United States – who had run on a pledge to “immediately begin to remove our troops from Iraq” [...]

Into Thine Hand…

I know many of you read Michael Yon’s work, for those who haven’t seen his latest I recommend that you check it out. It is a touching tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation.

Go see his post, INTO THINE HAND I COMMIT MY SPIRIT.

A great quote from the story:

Only [...]

Baby It’s Cold Outside

As most everyone here knows, the norm – in geologic terms – is for the earth to be in an ice age, not our current comfy, warmy present. The present era, known as an interglacial period (this one is  called the Holocence) has lasted a bit over 10,000 years now and, based on the record, [...]

St. Thomas Becket (1118-1170)

Today is the commemoration of the death of St. Thomas Becket, the martyred Archbishop of Canterbury.

A learned and worldly man, Thomas was a close and trusted friend of King Henry.  He was appointed by the king to a high office where he was expected to be loyal and take the king’s part against all others, [...]

Sorry I Didn’t Find Out About This Before Now…

Two people everyone should know about, but they don’t…

MICHAEL Novosel and his son Mike Jr. muse over Vietnam like old war buddies at a reunion.

“We were always being shot at. We expected it,” Mike Jr. said of the rescue missions they flew together.

America didn’t ask Mike Jr. to follow his father into war. He went [...]

He Sees You When You’re Sleeping

French Praise for American Soldier

Here’s a fascinating article written by a French infantryman in Afghanistan extolling the virtues of his American comrade in arms from a certain well-known Army division. It’s from 2008, but Blackfive just linked to it. Here’s the original article in French… the above is a translation — well worth the read. Here’s [...]

Radio Free Threedonia 2.2 -- All killer, no filler

As we continue to work out the technical kinks at our new Right Talk Radio home, an early Christmas/late Hanukkah present for our loyal RF3D listeners: week 2.2’s interviews, minus the in-between chatter from me and Floyd. Some call it a blessing and in lieu of our second unanticipated delay, I won’t argue that point.

Also, [...]

Santa Says Thank You!

Santa has asked that I thank everybody for their generosity this Christmastime.  (He’d have written himself, but he has carpal tunnel syndrome from filling out all the export forms.  “But I’m Santa!” doesn’t cut it with the post office, bless them.)  Thanks to all of you, there are nine heavy boxes winging their way to [...]

Thursday Open Thread

Christmas comes on the 26th for the 101st Airborne in Bastogne… C-47s drop in supplies — 12/26/1944.

Radio Free Threedonia, Mach 2.1

In case you couldn’t show up live last Sunday …

OK, so it took about 30 minutes of starts and stops and more silence than anything, but such is apparently the way of the world when making the switch to live online radio.

However, Eric, Floyd and eventually Rich (aka Mr. Front Page) anchored this week’s show, [...]

Ollie North on Heroes

This is a little late, it was posted by the NRA for Thanksgiving, but I think you will still appreciate it.

On Heroes

Seeing this face would pretty much ruin a Nazi’s day

America seems to be rather desperately searching for a hero these days, which naturally leads one to consider the nature of heroes. Paul Johnson published a wonderful book on the subject, entitled “Heroes: From Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar to Churchill and de [...]

Don’t call it a comeback, though we’ve been here less than a year (BUMPED)

LIVE IN ABOUT AN HOUR – please set your online radios to www.righttalkradio.com from 2-4. We’ll all get through this together.

For those who have wondered just where Radio Free Threedonia disappeared to after October …

We at Team RF3D proudly announce our move to the bigger virtual pastures at Right Talk Radio (since it’s virtual, imagine [...]

How’s Your Day Going?

I assume when you ate your Corn Flakes there were no specks of sand in the bowl.  How was your bed last night?  Comfy?  Did you sleep on a mattress?  Roof over your head?  Heat?  When you walked to the end of the driveway to get the morning paper any concern that you might step [...]

Bye Bye Billy! Bye Bye!

I am struck by the inherent decency in Mrs. Jackson… listen to her at the end of this clip. God bless her she did the right thing — the only thing she could have done.

h/t: JJ

For Those Who Truly Rock, We Salute You!!!

Let’s see, the charitable angle’s been covered by one of our other resident Catholics (though he brilliantly played guilt card much better in another post since then), another one went the “only in moderation” smutty direction we’re renowned for taking, so while out of traditional Catholic methods, now it’s my turn to rally the Threedonia [...]

Go, Joe!

It’s nice to have a—what’s the word?—a mensch in your corner.

To get to the 60 votes needed to pass the health-care obamination the Democrats are desperate to pass with such unseemly haste, they’re going to have to deal with the man they spurned in his last election, Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT).

Lieberman has been outspoken about [...]

Monday Open Thread