Subject: DAYS OF OUR LIVES #39
Date: 1 Jan 2002 12:03:36 -0600

It's been a frenzied year for me and the candles burn at both ends and I've reached the ripe old-age of 65 with fanfare fm Patty who is 62.  Both senior citizens and proud that we've been blessed with two fine boys and good health It's been almost one year since (I finally dropped a dime) Ronnie Deese and I brainstormed the Det 27 and 4-4 reunion idea. It was initially to be for our TA gang only, but it wasn't long that we encountered barriers that soon led to the decision to organize the reunion for all who served at Det 27 and 4-4.  Soon Det 17, 53 and 66 joined and the results is what exists today. I admit that I've had my ups and downs trying to keep the Master Roster and missives up-to-date. I believe that the grassroots support that originally gave my missives (FOCK Rock, et al) its appeal creating the spirit of sharing yore memories - have faded into biting rebukes and into the delete or recycle bins of PC's  This nagging thought bothers me. In the beginning there was a sense and spirit of comaraderie, but now it is lacking from the original contributors and I suggest that we let bygones be bygones. It's worth noting -  in retrospect, its funny an inevitable, the outrageous things U remember.  Unfortunately, the old joke is true: "TOO SOON OLD, TOO LATE SMART." I need everyone's input for the DAYS OF OUR LIVES MISSIVES.  Some say that I've drifted too far, while others say that they enjoy the way it is.  I try and keep it simple, credible and sensible in fashioning my thoughts in a judicious way to bridge up unknowns that might open the door of long forgotten memories by tossing tidbits here and there.  There are no sacred cows in my backyard and I've said it many times before, but it bears repeating unequivocally, whatever my flaws are, and there are many, I will never succumb to the LIBERAL views. My desire is that the  non-contributors stop procrastinating.  Don't look at your TOUR OF DUTY in TURKEY as a WASTE. Regret is an appalling waste of energy My thoughts regarding the Memory Book meander from day to day and my plans are now vague. The ideas come easily to me, but enacting them comes harder, especially when many vet's didn't give a hoot about following the forwarding instructions for the Memory Book CD-R or to email me their BIO's.  Maybe it's me barking at the moon or the blind leading the blind or better yet, "U can lead a horse to water, but U can't make it drink!" I remain optimistic and sorta upbeat even though I haven't heard from a lotta vet's! TO ONE AND ALL, THE BEST TO ALL IN 2002 and agn I urge the procrastinators to get the questionnaires and BIO's to me ASAP. Sincerely, Elder RC and Patty Green- - -gH --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bah Hum Bug! Did you get scrooged this year?!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Howie Ramey
w7oj@hotmail.com Subj: ASA Memory Book October 2001 Elder,  What a terrific Xmas gift!  I rcvd  the CD-R in the mail on 12/30, TY!!! My hm computer's CD-R decided to go TU so I had to wait until today to view.  Mighty fine work you have done!! If you could use some financial support  let me know I'll glad to help. I stopped by a local Photo Shop for some ideas on copying my color slides and super 8 movies.  I think I'll have the slides copied to CD-R, the movies copied to VHS tape and available to those I might black-mail...he ha.  We'll see.I'll work on my personal info and e-mail you when I've jogged what memory I have left. Thanks Again. Happy New Year to You and Yours! Howie Ramey [[Tks Howie.  When U get the slides copied to a CD-R, please send a copy to me and I'll sort thru them for additions to the Memory Book and maybe put them on power point and save to a floppy and show at the Hershey reunion fm my Laptop- - -gH]] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Chas Mcclevish
cmcclev@earthlink.net Cc: Philip W. Kelly <res037jb@gte.net> Subj: TRIP TO ATHENS ELDER:  I've been wanting to relate the below for a while and just decided to do it today.
REMEMBERED:  Phil Rivaldo, Russ Sciandra, Jim Cozee and I went on a trip to Athens.  We were picked up by van at about 4 or 5 AM by a Turkish driver.  Since I was the last one to arrive at the van, I had to ride in the front passenger seat.  He was to take us from Manzarelli to the Ankara Airport.  The ride was uneventful from the barracks to the front gate, however it was hell after that.  He was speeding the whole way, and worse, passing on curves and hills.  It was amazing we were not killed just getting to the airport.  We asked him if he knew where the airport was and he said he did. His English was pretty good, so he went into the airport with us, to help get us on our way.  We showed our orders (copy attached) to the man at the information desk and he proceeded to explain to our driver that we were at the civilian side of the airport and if we were flying military, we needed
to go to the other side of  the airport.    Anyway, we saw the info guy draw a picture of the airport layout which looked like a "Y", with the military building in the upper left hand corner, the civilian building in the upper right hand corner, with Ankara (from where we came), at the bottom point.  Our driver told us he knew how to get there and we all piled back into the van.  After about 5 minutes of driving, we were dozing off.  In a sense I guess we were thankful to have at least gotten to the airport
alive.  The sun was just beginning to rise and I opened my eyes for a second to view the surround-ings.  I was just amazed to see this huge highway on my right, which reminded me of a hotrodders drag strip.  I think if someone was outside the van, my _expression would resemble a deers face caught in headlights.
- - - - -WE WERE ON THE AIR STRIP!!!!  - - - - 
I think I have a mental block of the events after that.  I may have woken the other guys with a scream, I don't remember.  Yep, our driver knew the way all right.  Not back down the road to Ankara and take the left fork, but right across the damn airstrip.  The tire marks were where the 707's, etc. touch down is branded into my brain.  Luckily none were landing or taking off  at the time. We arrived at the terminal alive and I had to fill out the drivers critique sheet since I was the unlucky soul sitting up front. We finally boarded the C130 for our flight to Athens, which was uneventful, except we had to sit in canvas jump seats and could see daylight through the panels of the fuselage.  Anyhow, upon my return to work the next week, I was notified by my boss that the investigators wanted to see me.  A zillion things must of run through my mind about what they wanted to talk about.  At least they were just next door, so I didn't have a lot of time to stress out.  I sat down and the agent handed me the Turkish drivers critique sheet.  He said that he thought I would like to change my wording a little, otherwise he would have to stamp it "OBSCENE".  I had written "I think the son-of-a-bitch was trying to kill us".  Of course I changed it.   After reassignment to Vint Hill, I spoke to someone who left Turkey after me, and he told me that the Turkish driver had been fired.  He had then gotten a job driving a tour bus in the mountains, drove it and his passengers over a cliff, killed himself and some others.  I was saddened to hear the news, but was happy it wasn't us.
ps:  Phil, do you remember this? --- Charles Mcclevish

[[Thanks for your great remembrance.  Your experience is well written and shud cause a lot of VET's to snap their finger's and say, "Hey, I remember a similar experience & then sit down and jot the story to me so that I can share it with the other turkey-trotters. Remember, remembering means that dementia has not taken over ones best friend, our memory! And, oh, by the way, I do remember the ugly driving habits of the TURKS. During the 13 weeks in 1965 that I worked out of Det 120 (NSA) in downtown Ankara, I had a Rolly-poly Turkish Army PVT, named Tafik, as the driver of a Dodge 4-dr, OD in color, vehicle and his driving skill was based on how loud he cud TOOT the horn and intimidate the other dolmuses, etc and, yes, he honked at every female that he saw.  I thoroughly enjoyed him and kept in touch until about 1975. I'm certain that he took full advantage of the vehicle when I was otherwise in the field with the Turkish Intelligence Service which included Army, Navu and Air Force personnel. Tafik's wife was an extremely attactive person as I recall and I often wondered about her happiness- - -gH]]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Charles Mcclevish
cmcclev@earthlink.net To: Philip W. Kelly res037jb@gte.net Cc: ercgreen ercgreen@yourinter.net Subj: Re: TRIP TO ATHENS PHIL:  Yep.  I meant to send it to you.  I haven't spoken to Rivaldo about it yet.  I had just remember-ed the incident.  I do have his son's email address, but his mail system had a problem.  Are you planning to attend the 2002 reunion in Hershey, 13-15 Sep?  I am thinking about it, since it is only about 2 hrs away.  By the way, The Athens trip was around 10 Sep 63, as shown on the attached pass.
PHIL/ELDER:  Sorry, I attached the wrong orders.  I meant to attach TURK3, the orders and pass for Athens, instead of the orders assigning me to Det 27. 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please note that LTC Raphael J. Dooley, S4, Det 27 circa 64-65 passed away in April 1993.  He was born 6 Oct 1914. I will include him in the TAPS section of the revised Memory Book.  I wud appreciate a write-up regarding Ltc Dooley fm those who knew him or worked with him.  I have not found his obit.- - -gH 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fm:
grichard2@juno.com> To: <ercgreen@yourinter.net> Sent: Sunday, December 30, 2001 10:44 PM Subject: Memory Book Elder....I received the CD you sent last week..It has some great memories and I recognize some of the names of people who were there when We were..Your note inside the mailer said to hold onto it until you send me instructions as to who to send it to next..I read in your last writing to Ray Bernstein that I was to send it to him ? ? ?  Let me know if that's what you want me to do... thanks again for the book and I think your doing a great job with it. I found some pictures of our time at KAS that I want to send you but I'm having trouble with my scanner right now..Looking forward to your ans about  the CD. Gary Richard  [[Merhaba Gary.....Many thanks.  I've had a lot of trouble trying to keep track of who has received the Memory Book and who hasn't because MOST people simply do not follow the forwarding instructions and I'm the one trying to keep track of where all the CD's are: plus  UP-DATE it too and paste together the DAYS OF OUR LIVES MISSIVES. Please send the CD to Ray Bernstein at 7516 Alleghany Rd., Manassas, VA 20111 and include a note for Ray to mail it to: Tom Bodine, PSC 61, DCSG, APO AE 09642 and for Tom Bodine to hold the CD-R until I send him his forwarding instructions.
FOR TOM BODINE:  Is your mailing address correct as listed above?
Gary - - -I'll be looking forward to rx'ing your foto's and will include them in the DAYS OF OUR LIVES MISSIVES and the revised Memory Book.  If U can't scan them, then mail them to me at 3094 Warren Rd., Indiana, PA 15701 and I'll mail them back to U or, maybe, give them to U at the Hershey reunion.  Now that you've reviewed the Memory Book, I'd appreciate it if U wud sit down and write about your TOUR OF DUTY at MANZARALI and KARAMURSEL. Do it on WORD and that way U can revise, revise and revise some more before U email it to me. This is also true for Ray Bernstein and Tom Bodine. Again, many thanks- - -gH
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Tom Bodine
tebodine@hotmail.com To: ercgreen@yourinter.net; grichard2@juno.com Cc: raysbern4@juno.com Subj: Re: Memory Book Hello Elder, I guess you mean is my email address correct.  I know some people have had  trouble with my email address.  My correct email address is  tebodine@hotmail.com.
FYI, Elder, I have contacted a couple of the guys on the roster.  I´v e contacted Preston Bell, Richard Corriveau and Al Lafo.  I´m not sure they are all on your list, but I think so.  By delving into other links I have also contacted two of my mates from the 371st RRC in Viet Nam (1966-1968  time frame).  It´s been great talking over some of the old times.  Keep up your efforts. Tom Bodine
[[Tom.  It's ur USPS mail ADR that I was asking about.  I, too, served with the 371st RR Co in 1969 as Ops Sgt and 1SG.  Other Manzarali/Karamursel Vet's who served in the 371st were Ralph Tilney , Mike Hazelbaker and Spanky Madison, et al. - - -gH]]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fm: John Bircher bircher@erols.com To: RicRalph@aol.com; ercgreen@yourinter.net Cc: mrgabe@hotmail.com Subj: RE: Memory Book Thanks Ralph, received the Memory Book. .  Will copy it immediately and then forward on to Mike Garbriel.  John Bircher
[[Mike. Please email me when U rx the CD-R and then I will
give U an address where to mail it. tks- - -Gh]] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm:
RicRalph@aol.com To: bircher@erols.com ercgreen@yourinter.net Cc: mrgabe@hotmail.com Subj: Re: Memory Book John--Glad it got to you OK.  Wish you all the best during this New Year.
Ralph Richter
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm:
Roy Des Ruisseaux Subj: Seasons Greetings Elder:  Just received the latest Days of our Lives #38. The wife just left for work,1st day back since Oct. surgery. In a little while I'm off to see some of the family. Anyhow I'll talk to the wife about the next reunion and will be making reservations shortly. Tomorrow  Dec. 24th 2001 marks the 40th anniversary of getting drunk for the first time in my life. NCO club 1961. Fun night but spent most of Christmas day working in a guardshack and puking in the snow. Ah well, memories are made of this. Merry Christmas and Seasons Greetings to all the Maulers and their families. See you in Hershey.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From:
Tom Beall To: innfo@stayholiday.com Cc: Elder Green Subj: Det 27, 4-4 & 66 Reservation Request I will be attending the ASA reunion and request that a non-smoking room be reserved for me and my wife for 13-15 September 2002 at $79 per day per agreement with Elder RC Green and Donna Centofanti.  Please confirm my reservation by return E-mail.  Thank you.Thomas Beall, 6670 Heisley Rd., Mentor, OH 44060, 440-255-8642 [[Tks Tom. I'd appreciate it if everyone wud include me as Cc for the reunion reservations so that I can keep abreast for future planning- - -gH]] ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm:
RNewman244@aol.com Subject: Merry Christmas Merry Christmas to all and may 2002 bring you God's richest blessings. Ray and Laura
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm:
James Nolan Subj: Update of Roster. Thanks for the roster, looks great, the only change is that my grade should be CW-4. my spouse was with me the entire tour and we lived in Ankara. Spouse name; Rita, She was a avid bowler and golfer while we were in Turkey. --- James Nolan--- jimmyqnolan@earthlink.net ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm:
James Nolan Subj: Christmas Attachments Yes I did enjoy those two Christmas attachments that you forwarded to me, thanks so much. If you should look on the inside of one of the attachments you will see a prayer,  Although I did not get credit for writing the paper it was mine.  The Catholic Priest was a friend of mine and when I call him and ask for a prayer, he said write it yourself, your a Catholic and so I did. Oh well the prayer may not of been too good but the food was great . Regards, Jim ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Mark Hamilton
hama@iag.net To: Jimmy Q NOLAN jimmyqnolan@earthlink.net Subj: Good to Hear From You!! Jim:  Good to hear from you after all these years.  I sure do remember the Captain.  His name was William H. Hardy.  Got to be the same guy.  Having worked for you, Dooley, Wolf, and Morgan for so long, I wasn't a big fan of Hardy.  Just wasn't crisp like the rest of you.  I remember his habit of leaving all manner of classified documents laying open on his desk without coversheets.  Turkish nationals would come and go and this guy just leaves stuff laying around like no big deal.  I had a chat with Dooley about it Dooley hauled him down to the conference room and set him straight.  I looked up the POW lists and did some research on Wm H. Hardy.  He sure did get captured all right.  I'm attaching a couple of items I found.  He was released, returned to the states, retired as an LTC and now lives in NC somewhere. Jim,  please keep in touch with our group.  It was great to hear from you. Mark Hamilton
FM: Nolan to Hamilton:  Hi, sure do remember you at the S-4 office. Yes that sure was along time ago which tells us all that&nbsp; we are sure getting old. Yes it would be nice to see some of those Manzarali members at the 2002 reunion. Of course as of now I have no idea that I will be able to attend but rest assured I will try.  I remember most of the people that was in the Hqs building and of course all that was in our office, Wolf, Morgan, Dooley etc.,  Do you remember the black Captain that was assigned to our office a few months before I left?  Anyway I met him in Vietnam before he was taken a prisoner. Can't remember his name so I don't know if he was returned home on the prisoner exchange. I understand that Dooley died but never heard from Wolf or it.Morgan. Thanks for sending the e-mail, enjoyed. James Nolan
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Ted Midtaune
midtaune1@llnl.gov Subj: Timing What great timing you have! The package with the hat, T-shirt, and an  unexpected Suprise Polo shirt arrived just before Christmas. The medium T was  a perfect gift for my wife. Shame on me for not thinking that she would like a remembrance too. As it turned out, she was ecstatic over it, prob-ably thinking that I had forgotten that she was over there also. So, my friend, you did me a big favor. I Thank  You!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Tom Bodine
tebodine@hotmail.com Subj: Re: Det 27 reunion group Hello Elder, Just a note to let you know I got ur email and appreciate the contact.  I  see from your dates at det 27 that we overlapped a bit.  I left there in Oct 66, you arrived in June.  I don´t have any memory of you but I must have seen you because I was in the TA shop also.  Seems I remember an E7 who was in charge for a while with the name of Bowine or something like that, very  similar to my own name, Bodine.  Anyhow, hope you all had a merry Christmas and will enjoy the new year. CUL AR SK  Tom Bodine -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm:
DBMJL@aol.com Elder..I mailed the CD-R to Art Handy and mailed a copy of the history to Nathan Hamrick..and he should receive next Wednesday..UPS.  Art will receive the CD tomorrow.  Dave Cribbs/Charlotte, NC/Det4-4/MY70-JL72 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: David Comroe Please change the e-mail address for Michael Comroe to: "
mfcomroe@onix.com"   Thanks, -dave [Done, & thanks for relaying the msg's to your Dad- - -gH] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm:
James Nolan To: ercgreen ; Hagan, Rocky A (FL51) Cc: 601@kyis.net Subj: RE: Then Memory Book
Since I haven't been home since the 17th the Memory Book may be at my address in Hopewell. I  will read the book, down load/copy  as soon as possible. I will them mail it to Ronald Hudson as you requested.  Sorry that I was a little bottle neck in passing the book on, holidays and vacations  have a way of slowing things down. Expect to be home on Jan 2 and will accompolish the mailing as  soon as possible after that. Regards, Jim
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: William Bender
bbender@tobiasinc.com Subject: follow up to your phone message Dear Elder:  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!  I'm actually in my office today, not  flying around the World. I'm happy to pass along my current E-mail address but this is subject to change once again as I'm using Comcast Digital Cable as my provider and they use Excite as the Home page. Excite went bankrupt but Comcast and few other users stepped in and provided a few million  dollars to keep them afloat through the end of March. Now according to what I read Comcast will start its own service within the next month and I'll be provided with another E-mail address! Currently it is (wddcbender@home.com)
Bonnie Cooper sent me an E-mail requesting information about the reunion. I suggested that she contact you for all of the details. I think that the only detail to finalize is the location of the Saturday breakfast. I may have found a place large enough to hold a group a large as ours. It's located about a 10 - 15 minute drive from the hotel along Route 22 East of Indiantown Gap. I also will inquire about the facilities at the hotel as well.
While we haven't actually pulled off the 2002 reunion, I received a suggestion from Ron Moore that the next reunion location be considered in the Maryland, Ft. Meade area. This may be a great site as the NSA museum is there, as well as a lot of interesting things to see and do. Annapolis is nearby, Baltimore Inner Harbor etc. I think he would make a great organizer for 2003!!!!
With regard to the memory book, was this on the 3 1/2" floppy disk? I haven't had a chance to review this yet as I've been busy with personal problems. First it was the hot water heater bursting, the repainting of the house, new carpets, and Dawn breaking her neck during the process when the leg of the ladder she was standing on broke. It hasn't been easy these last eight weeks!!!! But I see a light at the end of the tunnel and I just hope it isn't a train coming down the tracks!!! I'll be in the office today and Friday if you need to reach me, (1-800-877-3367). Best Regards, Bill
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm:
Jones, Ed To: innfo@stayholiday.com Cc: ercgreen@yourinter.net Subj: Det 27, 4-4 & 66 reservation request I WILL BE ATTENDING THE ASA REUNION AND REQUEST THAT A NON-SMOKING ROOM BE RESERVED FOR ME (& MY WIFE) FOR 13-15 SEPT 2002 AT $79. PER DAY PER AGREEMENT WITH ELDER RC GREEN AND DONNA CENTOFANTI. PLEASE CONFIRM MY RESERVATION BY RETURN E-MAIL. Thank you. Herbert E. (Ed) Jones, Sr Global Tech Support Mgr., ESCO Corp., (217) 477-7223 (217) 477-7213 (Fax) (503) 805-2180 (Cell)  hejones@escocorp.com  -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm:
Gary Winch Subj: Re: Memory Book Hi and Happy Holidays!  No, I did not receive the Memory Book CD.  I did see, at one point, where it was to be sent.  Things are beginning to settle down, after several trips to Vermont to spend time with my wife's ailing dad (he passed away about a week ago).  best wishes/Gary 
[[FOR BOB ANCELL: DID U RX THE MEMORY BOOK FM Tony Salinger? Please advise.- - -gH]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Gene Cram Subj: POLITICS IN AMERICA A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost.  She lowered altitude and spotted a man below . She shouted to him, "Excuse me, can you help me?  I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am." The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot air balloon approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feet above sea level.  You are 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude."  She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a republican." I am, replied the man, "How did you know?" "Well," answered the balloonist ,  "Everything you told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to make of your information, and I'm still lost. Frankly, you've  not been much help to me." The man smiled  and responded, "You must be a Democrat." "I am, replied the balloonist, But how did you know?" "Well, said the man, "You don't know where you are or where you're going.  You've risen to where you are due to a large quantity of hot air.  You made a promise you have no idea how to keep, and you expect ME to solve your problem.  You're in EXACTLY the same position you were in before we met, but somehow now its my fault."  -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Robert Dandridge Subj: HAPPY NEW YEAR Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and has a Happy and Healthy New Year. Bob D.  :-)--- Robert Dandridge--- http://mail.yahoo.com/config/login?/cgi-bin/compose?mailto=1&msg=MSG1009904682.17&start=1229648&len=122039&src=http://mail.yahoo.com/config/login?/&type=x&to=bobbyd4%40mindspring%2ecom&cc=&bcc=&subject=&body=&curmbox=F000000001&a=c9b22fad0a3c26f205922521a9365bf1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Joe Carvalho http://mail.yahoo.com/config/login?/cgi-bin/compose?mailto=1&msg=MSG1009904682.17&start=1229648&len=122039&src=http://mail.yahoo.com/config/login?/&type=x&to=kohala61%40pacbell%2enet&cc=&bcc=&subject=&body=&curmbox=F000000001&a=c9b22fad0a3c26f205922521a9365bf1 Subj: Re: HAPPY NEW YEAR The best to everyone and like Bob Dandridge says, Happy and Healthy New Year. Joe
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Dumbo <
lstupid1@starpower.net> Subj: Time funs when you're having fliesHow times flies...Can you believe it?  Monica turned 28 this week.  It seems like only yesterday
she was crawling around the White House on her hands and knees.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fm: Dumbo (Bill Binney)
lstupid1@starpower.net Subj: More Shameful Clinton Legacy In Retrospect gH - I had never seen this piece..prior to now - fyi.  Bill Binney
Dead Hero's Father Tears into Clinton
London Sunday Times
Copyright 1994
Newspapers Limited
May 29, 1994, Sunday
SECTION: Overseas news
Dead hero's father tears into Clinton
BYLINE: James Adams
It was the moment President Bill Clinton wanted to restore his tattered reputation with the military before his departure for the D-Day celebrations in Europe this week, James Adams reports.
He had just presented posthumous Congressional Medals of Honour, America's highest military decoration, to the widows of two soldiers for valour in Somalia.  After inviting the families for a moment of quiet reflection in the Oval Office, the president approached Herbert Shughart, the father of one of the two soldiers, and offered his hand.
To his astonishment the handshake was declined. ''You are not fit to be president of the United States,'' said Shughart Senior. ''The blame for my son' s death rests with the White House and with you. You are not fit to command.''
The president reeled and the unprecedented onslaught continued for some minutes. According to witnesses it was a ''highly charged emotional moment'' which resulted in Clinton trying to explain to Shughart,Sr. why the events of that day last October were not his fault.
Shughart and his colleague, both sergeants, were killed trying to rescue fellow rangers from a vicious fire-fight in which 18 died and 75 were wounded. A later Pentagon investigation revealed that the troops had been refused the right equipment and there was no political or military plan to justify the American presence in Somalia.
Although the president has tried to escape the blame, he is largel credited with the failure of the whole American effort to bring peace to Somalia.
According to witnesses to the Oval Office scene, the Shughart family remained unconvinced by the president's arguments.
''The medal doesn't help anything, other than that we are grateful that Randy will be remembered in such an honourable way,'' said Lois Shughart, the soldier's mother.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Dumbo
lstupid1@starpower.net Subj: B-1 Crew Member Rescue Here's the story from one of the US Navy Sailors involved in the rescue of the 4 USAF Crew-members.
A good read from the rescuer's point of view. The Navy comes through again....
"As everyone knows, we had a busy night.  No matter what you hear on the news, this is the story:
We watched on radar and talked on radio to this B-1 that left Diego Garcia around 2100 hours last night.  At about 100 nautical miles out they  called in an emergency.  One of their engines was out and they couldn't get it going again.  They turned around and started heading back, stating that they were okay and that they would get back to Diego Garcia and fly around the island a little to burn off extra fuel, then land.  They didn't  make it back.  Shortly after the u-turn, they disappeared from our
scopes without a trace. It's close to 2200 when this goes down and the Captain gets on 1MC (announcing system) to tell us what happened.  We head straight for their last  position at over 30 knots.  On our way there, we started preparing for the worst.  We manned up our two RHIB's (rigid hulled inflatable boats) with a  whole bunch of guys and gear.  We had night vision gear, blankets, first aid, stretchers, Gatorade (they were pretty happy about the Gatorade), and  a whole bunch of other stuff.  Each boat had a corpsman (for medical help), signalman (in case the radios died), engineer (to fix the boat), officer  (to be in charge), coxswain (he drives the RHIB), a seaman to do anything the coxswain says), and a rescue swimmer to bring the pilots out of the  water. Onboard the ship, they are preparing stretchers and stretcher bearers. All sorts of lookouts are being manned.  It was a pretty hectic transit. So the Captain gets on the 1MC announcing system again, and tells us what he knows.  
"A B-1 bomber went down.  They have a crew of four. We are talking to one of the pilots on his rescue radio.  He is in his life raft and doingokay.   He can hear voices around him.  Where they are is a shallow area that the ship can't get to.  We are going to stop about 5 - 10 miles away and send  the RHIB's down the bearing to the pilots."  Just when we stop and begin to put the RHIB's in the water, he gets on again.  "Two pilots are now together and in their rafts and doing ok.  They can hear voices around them still."    So I'm now thinking that all four are accounted for and alive and talking.    This is good. We dropped the RHIB's into the water.  Mine went in second.  Then, it didn't start...  but that's what the engineer is for.  It only took a few minutes  to discover a loose cable on the battery.  We got going a mile or two behind the other RHIB.  On our way out, we could smell all of the jet fuel.   All I was thinking was that I hope I don't have to swim in it. After about 7 miles, the other RHIB said that they had found the two that were talking  on the radio.  We slowed down a bit and begin to close in on their location.   We were looking all around.  So were the planes.  There were three planes all doing low flying runs this way and that way with their landing lights  on.    It was kind of wild.  As I watched the water that one was lighting up I saw a flash.  As the  plane flew by and the area darkened, it was easy to see a strobe light not  too far from us.  We jammed straight for it.  When we got closer and slowed down, we saw that it was indeed a pilot.  He said that he was okay, so  we just leaned over and pulled him in.  The ejection process is a pretty
violent evolution.  He had 'rope burns' on his arm and neck and face from various straps and stuff pulling tight when the chute opened.  He was pretty stiff and sore, too.  Also, he didn't have his raft.  It was torn away from him at some point before he got to the water.   At this point we were told to transfer our guy to the other     RHIB with  the two guys in it.  Then, they were going to take them back and we would stay and look for the fourth.  As we were about to start over to meet the other RHIB, we saw a flare.  All three pilots said, don't worry about us, lets go  get our buddy.  So, both boats headed straight for him. We got there about the same time as the other one.  We decided that we'd pick him up to  even out the loads in the RHIB.  I actually got to get into the water for this one.   The guy was in his raft and we didn't want to get too close because we might foul our prop on his parachute or sea anchor.  I jumped in and swam  up to him.  "Good evening, my name is Jim and I'll be your Rescue Swimmer for the evening."  It got me a smile and a chuckle - this guy is okay,  too.  He asked me what the drill is to get him out of the raft and into the RHIB.  I tell him that he rolls out and I give him my floatation device. Roger that.  He rolls out and grabs the SAR-1 (floatation device), I grab him, and we kick over to the boat.  They lifted him into the RHIB and we were on our way.  Mission complete, job well done.  On the way back, they told us what happened.  Once their engine failed,  other systems started dropping offline, too.  They were down to one generator when the last straw came.  The attitude (not altitude) indicator malfunctioned.  Now they couldn't tell if they were flying level or not.  And when they did figure it out, they were flying upside down and  heading for the water.  At night with calm seas and the stars reflecting on the  water, it looks like sky all around.  So they all ejected at over 15,000 feet.  Kind of a wild story...Anyhow, the Captain gave us a holiday routine today, so I am going back to bed." -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fm: Mark Hamilton
hama@iag.net Subject: Manzarali Station Web Site - New Pictures Added Gentlemen:  Happy new year from sunny Orlando.  I have completed some housekeeping on the site and have added pictures #87-#100.  As always, if any of you have anything you would like added to the site just e-mail me the item and I will set it up.  There will be lots more added in 2002. Have a safe, prosperous, and profitable 2002. Mark Hamilton www.images-by-markhamilton.com/ManzaraliVets
========================================================================================