The Punishers

I'm sure that by now you'll have read Michael Yon's latest dispatch, The Punisher's Ball. As always it's a wonderfully written tribute to the men of Deuce Four and I just wanted to take the time to highlight this piece. And to take a moment to thank Bruce Willis for attending the ball-

"Bruce had taken the time to fly in as a guest speaker to thank the members of the Deuce Four. He gave the most impassioned speech I can remember, using clear terms—including some well-selected profanities to describe terrorists—to express his admiration and support for the troops. Bruce’s speech was so accurate in his description of the war, and so charged with emotion, that he seemed ready to lead the troops himself back to Iraq; and they were ready to go."

It was damned decent of him to take the time to meet with the men of Deuce Four. However there is another part of the post I want to take a moment to focus on-

"The ghosts of the fallen took their places alongside widows and family of the fallen comrades. One young wife, overtaken by despair, had taken her own life shortly after her husband died in Mosul. The widow of another soldier killed in an attack that I witnessed was left alone to parent four children. A mournful fog skirted the edge of the dance floor all night."

I try to give a few dollars to Soldiers Angels whenever I can but I'd also like to do something for the widows of those men who have fallen in Iraq. I can't begin to imagine what suffering they're going through right now and in a few weeks some of these kids are going to have their first Christmas without their father. If ANYONE can suggest a way to aid them please leave a comment here. Is there a charity set up already to help provide for these women and children?

I'll look into it and see what's around but if you know of something drop me a line here.