Note: Meet Victoria Jackson on WND’s Tea Party at Sea cruise to Alaska this summer.
 Marine hangar, June 2011: Gunny Pop, Sgt. Maj. Bass, Capt. Clark, Gunnery Sgt. Davis, Cpl. Babcock |
I felt so safe. In awe. Speechless.
I was visiting Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 465 near La Jolla, Calif. Those men are real men. Manly men. Brave. Polite. Ethical. Unselfish. Givers. Muscular. Smart. Brave again. Humble.
I was so honored to hang out with them for the afternoon. I wanted to thank them for their service. That’s my new thing. My political awakening in 2008 brought with it a military awakening. Maybe it’s my age, but I realized for the first time that men and women were out there risking their lives for me. Now I can’t stop thanking them, in airports, and hangars and Troopathons.
At Troopathon 2011 this week, I got to see my hero Nick “Gunny Pop” Popaditch and his loving wife, April, again. They got me to La Jolla, and what a time was had!
Trying to impress a Marine with a handstand is silly, but I did it anyway. Sgt. Maj. Bass showed me the $40 million helicopters they use to fight the enemy. Gunnery Sgt. Davis showed me the window the machine gun sticks out of:
[jwplayer jKNnBbpR]
Capt. Clark told me he is engaged to an actress. I warned him that might be a challenge. I told him about the movie “Blue Sky.”
Gunny Pop’s friend of 20 years, Sgt. Maj. Bass, was so kind and gave my friends and me a stellar tour.
My friend Ann Marie told me that 9/11 was what transformed her from a liberal to a conservative. I asked her why. She said it was the first time she realized that America had real enemies who really hated us and wanted to kill us. It was the first time she realized how important our military was.
We ended our day at the cross. Unbelievable as it may seem, there are some atheists who occasionally try to tear this beautiful war hero monument down.
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As the sun was setting, we visited the sea lion beach. One rude woman was on the beach letting her son taunt and tease the sea lions who were trying to get to the shore to rest. You could see that the sea lions wanted to beach, or whatever the technical term is. There was a family of them including a baby. Finally the leader of the sea lions just went on up there despite the human threats. A crowd gathered. I was so upset to see the humans standing there, keeping the sea lions at bay. April told me this is one of La Jolla’s issues. Human vs. animal. Where’s PETA? is what I was wondering. Please let the poor sea lions have their beach. They are so beautiful. We are blessed to watch them.
Just as we are blessed to watch the mighty strength and valor of our armed forces. True heros walk among us. God bless and protect our brave military. In Jesus name. Amen.
(Sorry atheists, we still have the freedom to say that.)
