Wednesdays Hero Blogburst

Welcome to this week's installment where all the member bloggers of Wednesdays Hero found in my sidebar and theirs collectively honor many of the real hero's found in this country who's names and bio's have been provided to us for these humble tributes by blogroll creators Indian Chris @ Right Wing and Right Minded along with HooahWife.

Many of our soldiers are those that have paid the ultimate price for this country, protecting it both at home and abroad from the many threats we face from our enemies wishing us and them harm, and some are not.

In either case they are the real American heroes of today and we now both salute and offer our prayers to both them and their loved ones. To join us if you wish to please start by reading the post below.

Respectfully,
Chicago Ray

This Week's Soldier Was Suggested By Kat

Sgt. Michael J. Stokely
23 years old from Sharpsburg, Georgia1st Battalion, 108th Armor Regiment, 48th Brigade Combat Team
August 16, 2005

Next Saturday, August 25, the town of Peachtree City, Ga. will be holding it's inaugural Ride To Remember for Sgt. Michael Stokely who lost his life two years ago tomorrow in Baghdad, Iraq when an IED detonated near his position. The patrol he was with had stopped and the NCO in charge had everyone take a rest while he walked back down the road with a Corporal to check out something suspicious. Sgt. Stokely refused to to rest, and instead took up a flanking position at the rear of his truck to watch their backs.

Which, as a Cav Scout dismount, he saw as his job. The NCO and Corporal heard cracking noises and made their way to the sound when they were hit by an explosion. The NCO was seriously wounded but the Corporal made it through without a scratch. Sgt. Stokely, however, wasn't so lucky.

You can read more about Sgt. Michael Stokely here and here.

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday.
For that, I am proud to call them Hero.
We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived

This post is part of the Wednesday Hero Blogroll. To find out more about Wednesday Hero, you can go here.

UPDATE WEDNESDAY AM: I'm adding a very apropos post at my friend Donald Douglas' blog Burkean Reflections today which discusses the conduct with which these brave and heroic soldiers of ours are conducting themselves in Iraq. Particularly in comparison to other wars civilian casualty rates going back through the 1800's. Thanks Donald for the heads up and the post..

Civilian Casualties and U.S. Conduct in Iraq

Colin Kahl, writing in the new International Security (PDF), provides an outstanding examination of the U.S. military's record of minimizing noncombatant causalities in the Iraq war. Kahl's research shows that while the war has resulted in a heavy loss of civilian life, U.S. forces in Iraq have a better record of limiting noncombatant fatalities than in America's previous wars. Further, a powerful norm of noncombatant immunity has generated tremendous collective expectations for combat behavior that conforms with international human rights standards.

Here's the comparison of the record in Iraq to earlier wars : continued

---