The Chattanooga shooting

I would like to dedicate a post to the Marines and other individuals that were wounded in the Chattanooga Tennessee shooting. If you are unfamiliar with the story it occurred on July 16, 2015.  A gun man named Mohammad Yousssuf Abdulazeez entered into a military recruiting center and opened fire.  He then went on to a U.S. Navy facility killing and injuring more innocent people. In total Mohammad shot seven people, killing four U.S. Marines. The four Marines that lost their life that day are Thomas Sullivan, a native of Hampden, Massachusetts; Squire “Skip” Wells, a native of Marietta, Georgia; David Wyatt, a native of Burke, North Carolina; and Carson Holmquist of Grants, Wisconsin.



These brave men were all combat veterans who served this country heroically. This incident has become a common occurrence throughout the United States. With all the terrorism and retaliation, innocent victims and civilians get caught in between the crossfire.

As these facilities were under attack, the Marines acted rapidly and evacuated the individuals that were in the building. Having found it to be their responsibility to assure everyone gets out safely and that the gunmen does not hurt any innocent victims, the Marines stood within the premises to secure the intruder from entering the building. In doing so these brave men risked and lost their own lives but were able to save the lives of seven other individuals. It is a shame that a careless act of violence has resulted in the deaths of such brave individuals who had served their country diligently. Even as these Marines found themselves in-between crossfire before, it is saddening to know that their lives were taken in the place where they were to be considered the safest, their own homeland.

Mohammad was known as an articulate college graduate with a bright future ahead of him, what has left us all flabbergasted is the reason of why this unfortunate took place. There are still ongoing investigations from the FBI to see whether or not this was a terrorist attack or not. For the time being they’re treating it as such. The rampage eventually came to an end when Lieutenant Commander Timothy White courageously pulled his own firearm and shot the assailant. Although this military office is a gun free zone and personal firearms are not permitted on the grounds, Lt. White reacted in a heroic way and saved the lives of other potential victims had he not responded quickly.

Lieutenant White deserves an honorable award; instead he is under scrutiny and may face possible legal charges for firing his weapon when he legally shouldn’t have. I think in this event there are certain circumstances that should be considered that may possibly outweigh the legality of the situation when it resulted in preventing further harm and death. He acted in defense and protected those who were not able to protect themselves. I will continue to follow this story and hope charges will be dropped for this brave hero. As to the men who lost their lives and the families that are undoubtedly suffering, my sympathy and admiration go out to all of you!

One Marines View: Semper Fidelis

I wanted to introduce a great blog that I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to come across; it is called One Marine’s View: Semper Fidelis. One Marine’s view is a tell it like is kind of blog. It depicts the view of a former Marine, Maj Pain, which comments on today’s current events that surround the military. Maj Pain is a former veteran; he was once an infantry officer in the United States Marine Corp and went off to become an officer. Through his many deployments and multiple combat tours he has gain a respect and admiration for former Marines.  Each of his posts displays his high regard for the Marines. He gives us his in-depth view and unfiltered commentary on the political and social events concerning our members of The Armed Forces. 

I particularly took interest in his post titled “36 Marine Heroesof the Pacific WWII Theater Found 71 Years After Death.” This post encompasses the sometimes horrible truth about the dangers of war. During WWII Marines fought long and hard in a violent Battle of the Tarawa in November 1943. Do to some unfortunate events many Marines died in the battle, 36 of whom were never brought back home until this year. The post goes on, in detail, describing one of the Marines, the intricate role he played in the war. I decided I wanted to add my own commentary to this post because as a former Marine I know the importance of returning home whether it is safely or not. Under no circumstances do we leave any Marines behind. It is heart wrenching to know that there is a grave stone with these gentlemen’s names on them that blatantly lie, stating it as their final resting ground. I am pleased to hear that after proper identification of these bodies, they will return home and to be placed to rest as they should have been many, many years ago. I go on to write: 

I enjoyed reading this post and admire the importance of bringing our Marines home under any circumstances. It is very unfortunate these brave men have been so far from home through all these years. They died defending our country and deserve to rest in peace in their own home. I am comforted to hear the tale of 1^st Lt. Alexander Bonnyman and gleam with joy that he is finally going to make it home. He has earned the great Medal of Honor amongst other praises, with doing so he has also earned the respect of a final resting place. The dignity I have for all my fellow Marines holds true even up to their very last breath, and it is great to know the same holds true for others as well. I hope my blog; Welcomehomemarine.blogspot.com can be as empowering as yours. Semper Fidelis!

Although  each comment is accepted at the discretion of the author on whether it will be posted, I hope when I check back in I see my comment, it lies right under this wonderful post about these heroic Marines. I surely recommend others in viewing this blog and getting an eagle eyes view of a truly exemplary blog. This blog has went on to win many awards including the Patriotic Website Award, which I can only dream of doing so myself one day.