“I would rather be tried by a jury of my peers than be carried by six of my friends in a casket.”  - Justin Sharratt  

Michelle Obama recently said that for the first time in her adult life, she was proud of her country. While I unequivocally disagree;  while I have found many occasions in my adult life to be proud of my country, I can emphatically say that this is not one of them. As a matter of fact; for the first time in my adult life, I am unabashedly ashamed of my country. Ashamed that our Commander-In-Chief would order Marines from Lt. Col Jeffrey Chessani’s 3rd Battalion to battle terrorists in Iraq only to turn his back and hold his nose while these brave men, who should be held aloft on our shoulders and celebrated, are viciously and selectively prosecuted. It is nauseating, this wretched betrayal.

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Technorati Tags: Haditha, Iraq, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, Media Bias, UCMJ

“The tears sliding down my face are not a sign of weakness - they affirm a father’s love for his Marine son” - Darryl Sharratt on his son, USMC Lance Corporal Justin Sharratt

* Photo of Justin in Fallujah, Iraq - courtesy of the Sharratt family

 Lance Corporal Justin Sharratt is a decorated United States Marine. He fought in the battle for Fallujah, modern urban combat at it’s worst, involving house-to-house and hand-to-hand fighting that killed some of Justin’s fellow Marines. But for Justin, Fallujah was only the beginning.

Justin’s father Darryl wants the world to know that although Justin is home from Iraq, he’s still fighting for his life. Justin is charged with three counts of unpremeditated murder during an ambush followed by a ferocious firefight in Haditha, Iraq in November, 2005. When we spoke last Saturday, Darryl sounded upbeat. He had just gotten off the phone with one of his attorneys, while his wife Theresa was one the line with another. He explained that the attorneys seemed satisfied with the progress of defense discovery.

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Technorati Tags: Darryl Sharratt, Haditha, Iraq, John Murtha, Justin Sharratt, UCMJ

The investigation into the alleged massacres that occurred both in Haditha, Iraq in November 2005, and Hamdaniya, Iraq in April 2006 undoubtedly have a long way to go. In the last week some of the Marines alleged to have taken part in the Hamdaniya incident have been placed in shackles at Camp Pendleton with more restrictions placed on them than the inmates at Guantanamo. Others have been referred to by US Congressmen as cold blooded murderers, despite the fact no charges have yet been filed.

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Technorati Tags: Andrew Grayson, Ehren Watada, Frank Wuterich, Haditha, Iraq, Jeffrey Chessani, John Murtha, Justin Sharratt, President Bush, Stephen Tatum, Tim McGirk, UCMJ

Back when I played football, I learned many valuable lessons. Lessons about guts. Lessons about determination and sucking it up. Lessons about sacrifice and putting the team’s best interests above your own; about continuing the fight until the clock runs out.

President Bush, Congressman John Murtha and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki have all come out and made inflammatory statements in regards to supposed atrocities committed by US Marines without any basis for doing so, other than the allegations of some Iraqi villagers and despite statements to the contrary by those involved.

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Technorati Tags: Andrew Grayson, Frank Wuterich, Haditha, Iraq, Jeffrey Chessani, John Murtha, Justin Sharratt, Political Correctness, President Bush, Stephen Tatum, Tim McGirk, UCMJ

As a pollywog, it doesn’t take long before you learn to keep your mouth shut.

I had just left the bus at Basic Training. I was next in line for the barber chair watching the guys in front of me –some of whom had that rock star length hair– get it buzzed right off. When I sat in the chair, I expected the barber to just buzz my head like he had done to all of the other recruits who went before me.

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Technorati Tags: Andrew Grayson, Frank Wuterich, Haditha, Iraq, Jeffrey Chessani, John Murtha, Justin Sharratt, President Bush, Stephen Tatum, Tim McGirk, UCMJ