Who's Going to Mess with These Guys?

Two hard working American soldiers who have been on the front lines in Iraq for over 11 months. They are safely in Kuwait now and will be in Kansas shortly!

Welcome, welcome home.

Thank you Jason and Robert!













A smiling face - good to see!















You talkin to me?!

95% Good News for Lee Hetzler

Great good news! The Army has decided that Sgt. Lee Hetzler can take his terminal leave, which means it is likely that he will not be called back for another tour. Of course, this is the Army we are talking about, so until all those papers are signed and he is firmly back in civilian life, we have to leave that 5% out there on the proverbial table.

The day after I posted about stop-loss, the government announced it was scaling back the numbers of troops retained in that practice. In true bureaucratic fashion, it is not going to do away with it altogether, and it is giving the Army a full two years to dial it down. But, the more men and women allowed to leave on their ETS (end of term of service) date the better.

I am going to continue to write and harass Pat Roberts about that stop-loss policy. There is a lot of controversy over it, and it seems to me that it has been abused by the government since the Gulf war. Rather than work to make sure troop levels are at an adequate level, it is easier to prevent soldiers from leaving. It is no longer an all volunteer Army at that point.

Of course, after I found this video of military life, it actually looks like fun to be in the military, so not sure why Lee wants to leave?!

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Post script: It was Iraq where the Army was wanting to send Sgt. Lee Hetzler, not Afghanistan. My journalistic integrity is at stake here.....

Luck of the Irish

Stop-Loss. That is the Army's term for preventing soldiers who have honorably served in George W. Bush's Iraq war from leaving the Army on time. It means they are sent back into combat rather than being discharged and free to go about their lives. Some have been caught in stop-loss and returned to combat tours as many as four times.

Last summer, I had the chance to meet some of my daughter's military friends. Robert and Jason are in Iraq right now, likely driving patrol even as I write. A third friend, Sgt. Lee Hetzler, has already served two tours of combat, in Iraq and in Afghanistan. He is currently stationed at Ft. Riley, and set to leave the Army in April. He has honorably served over seven years.

Lee is one of the finest young men I have met. He rides a Harley Super Glide, so of course that proves what a truly discerning guy he is! Lee is one of those soldiers we all have in mind when we think of the best our military has to offer. He is simply a nice human being. He is funny, polite, easy going, an excellent soldier, and a good-looking American guy. Any one would be proud to call him a son. He carries himself well and possesses a particular sort of humility, a stillness, I have seen in men who have been in war.

The first time I met Lee, the exact day of his pending discharge from the Army came into the conversation. Every soldier I have ever met knew the day he was to be discharged from the Army, and knew exactly how many days left until THAT day arrived. It is not that they hate the Army. It is that their lives do not belong to them as long as they are in the Army. They anxiously await the return of their freedom, the return to their own lives.

The first time I met Lee, he also mentioned being caught in stop-loss as his discharge date was drawing near. He and the other soldiers discussed it. They all understood.

It is not yet certain, but it looks as if Lee will be sent to Afghanistan rather than discharged in April. It looks as if he is going to be caught in stop-loss. It is another hard experience the Army hands out to its soldiers along with all the other hard experiences. It is merely a numbers game the military plays and there is no room for human hearts in those games.

I hope Lee does not have to return to Afghanistan. I hope he gets to go home to California, to ride his Harley wherever and whenever he wants. Sunday, I called and emailed Senator Pat Roberts' office about Lee. A woman from the Senator's Topeka office left a message last night:

"This is Gilda from Senator Robert's Topeka office. I am calling in reference to a phone call about Sgt Lee Hetzler. Please call me at 785-295-2745. Thank you."

I called Gilda today. I asked if Pat Roberts can do anything to prevent Sgt Lee Hetzler from returning to Afghanistan for another tour rather than leaving the Army and going home. She did not give me any hope except to say they could "look into it". She said Lee would have to be the one to ask their office to look into it, anyway.

There is another man who can be sent to war in Lee's place, a man who once missed his chance to serve honorably. George W. Bush recently came into some free time. He can take Lee's place.


May the luck of the Irish bless Lee, and Jason and Robert, and Wade and Ken, and all the men and women who have served, and are serving, our country.

Another Kansas Character You Should Meet

All things Kansas!

Though my good friend Ken is a world traveler, he has adopted Kansas as his home for the last twenty-five years. He is an excellent artist, making Native American flutes and drums, and has published a CD of his own flute music. Follow this link to hear "Coyotes in the Orchard"

http://cdbaby.com/cd/coyotesito

(This is information taken directly from the CDBABY web site about "Coyotes in the Orchard"):

Native American Ken Lopez crafts the traditional flutes he plays. An artist and musician, Ken is a world traveler and Vietnam Veteran. He has performed with the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC, and at the University of Hawaii in a cultural exchange with Hawaiians and Maori, among others. He performs across the country and in Central and South America helping to promote cultural exchange between other tribal peoples.

Ruston Slager is an extraordinary improvisational musician, a surfer and an artist. He has the rare gift of creating spontaneous music. Already a stand alone artist making his own music when Ken and Ruston met, it was clear that creating music was something they were going to do together, and it turned into a great first CD.