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Rep. Jeff Miller From Afghanistan: 40 Flag Draped Caskets, Honoring Those In Copter Crash
August 9, 2011
Rep. Jeff Miller is in Afghanistan as part of a congressional delegation and attended a battlefield memorial for the troops killed this weekend when their Chinook helicopter was attacked in Afghanistan. He submitted the following:
Tonight, I watched as time stood still. Battle hardened men and women wept. Tears of sadness. Tears of anger. Tears of pain. I watched as three pairs of boots stood in flawless formation on a land far from home. Dusty, still, yet no soldiers stood to fill them. Three helmets atop three rifles inverted upon their bayonets, representing each branch of service that lost a service member – Army, Navy, Air Force. Dog tags hung motionless, occasionally swaying in the gentle breeze that blew across the tarmac as if to remind us that these heroes will never be forgotten. In the background, airplanes could be heard taking off. The mission continued. The Battlefield Crosses stood to memorialize the ultimate sacrifice paid by our fallen soldiers.
These are America’s heroes. Hailing from small town USA, perhaps the family farm, a suburban town, or that inner city neighborhood. They have yet to know a life outside of our nation’s uniform. These young troops chose to serve, went where they were told, performed missions in faraway places most have never heard of, let alone will ever see. It is these men and women who chose to put themselves in harm’s way, who chose to go headfirst into battle so that others may sleep peacefully in their beds knowing that we are safe. These are America’s heroes.
We prayed. We remembered. And we resolved. I had just arrived in the Middle East when news of an American helicopter shot down spread through our group. We knew U.S. troops had been killed, but how many? Who? How? The next day, as we received more detail, I knew our country had suffered a horrific loss, a tragedy. As we set out for their battlefield memorial, I knew I did not know these troops who had fallen. But I know of their sacrifice. I know of their courage. And I know I will carry this moment with me forever as a grave reminder of gracious respect for those who serve and those who sacrifice.
A total of 40 were honored tonight, including 38 from the devastating helicopter attack and two killed in separate incidents. All died fighting a hero’s fight. We do not yet know the full story, but these warriors were part of a rapid response team sent to assist their comrades pinned down by enemy gunfire. It was a fierce firefight. Yet, these troops rushed into battle to save their fellow soldiers, a true testament to their bravery. They died courageously as people of honor, died fighting to protect the ones they loved and the ones they would never know. They died for our country. Come tomorrow, their comrades will carry on, because that is what they do, no matter how hard or how high the cost. As they carry on, they immortalize the sacrifice of their fallen brothers.
40 flag draped caskets, including those of our Afghan compatriots, were placed carefully in the hangar on an air base in Afghanistan, a hangar that no doubt many of these fallen warriors had seen before. This time was different. This time would be their final trip home. These soldiers, sailors, and airmen made their last journey across the ramp, carried by their brothers in arms who will fight on in their wake. They left on two C-17s under the light of a half moon. These brave soldiers, these sailors, these airmen, these heroes have made the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of a grateful nation. May they rest in peace knowing the world is a safer, better place because of their sacrifice. These are America’s heroes.
Godspeed.
Comments
8 Responses to “Rep. Jeff Miller From Afghanistan: 40 Flag Draped Caskets, Honoring Those In Copter Crash”
be to you Rep. Miller, and thanks be to all our fighting men and women
in past or future who risk their lives because we ask them.
ashamed, ASHAMED, I think not.
As one suggested we could have gone in and bombed them from
one end to the other till no one or nothing stood and it would have been
over, we do have NUKES. We could have killed them all to save our
young men and women from ever having to set foot on that soil where
so many have now died. We are not heathens and we are NOT ASHAMED.
We did what we thought was best and we tried not to indiscriminately kill
the innocent.
We should now tell our leaders enough, let them fight their own fights,
we are done.
My heart breaks for the families. I am the PROUD wife an Army Soldier. I may not agree with our political leaders decisions but when it comes to the Military as a whole I support and stand behind them 100%. Rep. Miller your words mean so much and knowing your representing Americans gives me hope for OUR Future at times when there is only doubt. I am PROUD of my Country, our Military, and my Husband
“SAD”- We may not be fighting an AMERICAN war but know that anytime one of our men and women are lost it is the most HONORABLE and not at all SHAMEFUL. They are told where to go, and they go no questions asked. They are doing and fighting for all of AMERICA.
To all the POW/MIA, you are not forgotten and always missed. To all of the Veterans, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. Your sacrifices and bravery paved the way to where we are today. To all of the men and women serving today, I salute, support, and stand behind you a strong and proud AMERICAN. To those serving overseas, COME HOME SOON!
“We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home.” Edward Murrow
GOD BLESS THE USA
To “Small Town Soldier”, I am right there with you brother. I joined the Air Force in 1983, and retired in 2005. Although I never saw the actual battlefields, I provide that reach-back service for the communication elements that were deploying. So I was talking to them as they set-up on the initial surges.
When a fellow member of the military is taken from us, it effects us all, in different ways. We do not ask for praise or even thanks…for most of us, it is just part of our job, a job we do willingly and without reservation.
To “SAD”, the members of the military do not get to pick where we go or who we have to fight. Is this war un-necessary, only time and history will tell. Personally, we should have finished with Afghanistan before we went to Iraq, carpet bombing the country from one-end to another until there wasn’t two bricks stuck together. I feel that the United States, like the Soviet Union will eventually pull out of this region. We are not seen as liberators by the local’s but as invaders. When we leave, they will still have to deal with the Taliban and Al-Qaida so no one in the local government is making too many waives.
How many more of our sons have to die before we wake up?
It is not honorable for a U.S. soldier to die fighting some unnecessary foreign war. It is in fact a shameful thing. All Americans ought to be ashamed of their government, its foreign policy, and the way it uses its military.
As a parent of a soldier I pay my respect and homage to those families that gave their loved one in the service of our country. May God be with you and comfort you all in your time of loss, as I know he was with your Sailor in their time of need. Our Country is truly blessed to have had your loved one serve in it’s armed forces. Once again…. THANK YOU!
All gave Some and Some gave All!
GOD BLESS
Praying for all the military an their families involved in such a horrific tragedy. I’m very thankful for the men an women who sacrifice an serve for our country..
Lord, comfort these families, let them know we share their pain and send them our deepest sympathy. Let those left to carry on know we at home support them with our prayers for their safety.
Rep. Miller, thank you. I am that kid who grew up in the small town. I joined the military to serve my country in a time of war. I went to those places that most people will never see. I have lost my friends in these places. I have seen, and lived, the terrible aftermath of what we have done to ourselves, fighting this war.
It is as refreshing as it is humbling to see an elected official (one that my family has had faith in for quite some time) go the extra mile to pay homage to the troops and to speak publicly of what our sacrifices means to them, and disregarding whatever the “naysayers” may think of it. Your place in our nation’s capitol is well-earned, Rep. Miller.
Your words could not have struck any deeper. We, America’s fighting force, wonder if we’ve been forgotten, sometimes. We fight on, regardless. But, our sacrifices often go unheard and unrecognized by the general public. The American people NEED to know who these brave men and women are. They NEED to know that we’re still there. We’re still fighting. And, seeing it penned from YOUR hand solidifies to US that there are still political figures that care.
Thank you for your words. Being from Northwest Escambia and knowing several others that are, as well, it’s good to know that when we have YOUR back, you have OURS.