Critically wounded soldier requests John Kerry pin his Purple Heart

[blm]

BOSTON - Senator John Kerry will pin the Purple Heart on PFC Sean Bannon at Monday's Patriots Day Red Sox game.

Bannon, 22, of Winthrop, was critically wounded by an IED in Iraq. Bannon has spent the last month at Walter Reed Military Hospital in Washington, DC.

Bannon requested that Kerry, a fellow Purple Heart recipient, do the honors of presenting him with the Purple Heart and asked that the Senator ask the Red Sox if he would be able to receive the award at home plate in Fenway Park.

The Red Sox organization was happy to help honor one of our nation's brave Patriots on the 233rd anniversary of the 'Shot Heard Round the World', marking the start of American freedom.


>>>>>>>

Today is Patriots Day in Mass.

[lisa58]

1. That's great

[blm]

2. Do you think RNC will have Republican faithful wear purple bandaids to the pinning?

.

[Parche]

8. I Remember That

What a complete disgrace to our brave military,

I can still see that F-IN lady smiling as she wore that purple bandaid

Right wingers are so ignorant

:hi:

[karynnj]

17. That more than any other point is where McCain sold his soul

He did weakly defend Kerry once when the SBVT came out, which was better than most Republicans. That he stood with Bush made sense IF that was where he was on the issues. He is now saying that he was against the way Bush and Rumsfeld ran the war, so someone should examine what he had to say in 2004 on that. But, that is politics - even if he did speak highly of Bush as CIC then.

What is unforgivable is that he stood on the stage of the Republican Convention while those creeps mindlessly made fun, not just of any medal, but a medal given when a soldier is wounded. They dishonored that medal. Even if it were only for John Kerry - it is disgusting that they would mock the fact that a 25 year old man was wounded 3 times, while their leaders mostly had other priorities. Had Kerry moved slightly or the angle been different, they wouldn't have been able top complain that the wounds were too insignificant. In fact, they might never have heard of this eloquent, principled, brilliant man at all.

McCain's own background - which he is marketing far more than Kerry ever did his status as a hero - should have made him absolutely sickened by the sight. Imagine a real principled, straight talking McCain - one who would when he took the stage condemn the bandaids as mocking the sacrifice of soldiers and who would ask that out of respect for him, if they have no respect for the soldiers who earned them, they should remove the despicable bandaids.

He didn't do this. Why not? My guess is that he knew that the fact that the media was treating them as though they were novelty hats, gaudy and tacky, but nothing to get upset about signaled that the media elite was condoning this lack of respect for Senator Kerry and that helped Bush.

[Libby2]

40. I remember it too..... I will never forget it.

[grace0418]

61. I know the exact woman to whom you are referring and I wanted to smack her upside the head.

:mad:

[ThatsMyBarack]

68. Scary, huh?

That purple-heart-bandaid lady was and still is a FAT STUPID COW!!!!!! :puke:

On the UP side, kudos to that soldier for choosing a real American hero to pin on his Purple Heart! :patriot:

[SpiralHawk]

10. Republicons mock our wounded veterans

From the republicon national convention:

[Owl]

11. Yuck! Geez, I'm trying to eat lunch.

[blm]

12. Anyone ever track down and identify that evil person?

.

[w8liftinglady]

19. Her name is Pat Peale..R from (of course) Texas

Pat Peale, a delegate from Texas, sporting an adhesive bandage with a Purple Heart on Monday.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/01/politics/campaign/01swift.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1208801044-AaBKW3oERrvL7qOZYEOF9g

[Raksha]

30. Thanks--I'm glad I can finally put a name to this smug POS.

Pat Peale...a name and face that will live in infamy.

[beachmom]

39. Does anyone know if she ever expressed regret? I know the lady

who dissed the Dixie Chicks did, although she was not a partisan Republican.

[Ian_rd]

59. This is just the most famous picture, but there were many others.

[Parche]

20. She Was The one

That F-IN picture, she looks so smug in her ignorant way

I would just love to ring her neck

They all talk on how they support our brave military, and they do this....
:grr: :grr: :grr:

:hi:

[SpiralHawk]

25. Indeed they do

Republicons lied our troops into this oil-profits crusade. They gave them shit for equpment. They have re-upped them over and over. Then they give shitty care to the veterans...

I think it's because the whole republicon leadership is CHICKENHAWKS, and they are secretly pained and ashamed at soldiers and veterans of real honor.

[calimary]

57. You can't ring her neck!

You couldn't get your hands around it, to begin with!

:P

[politicasista]

21. Puke

:puke:

[YOY]

23. I wonder where that pig is now?

If she's a better or more wealthy person.

I bet there's some bitter irony going on in some monstrous Repub's home...

[w8liftinglady]

24. She's getting Republicans "up"

"There hasn't been anybody to rally Republicans, to get them up," says Pat Peale, a "captain" with the Mighty Texas Strike Force, a group of Lone Star state Republicans dispatched to campaign in districts where GOP candidates are threatened
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=05540a11-c4f1-4bee-8767-ab2a4aefbb9d&p=2

[YOY]

26. I don't espouse violence (by/against women especially) but

I'd pay good money to see you put her in a sleeper hold headlock, w8liftinglady.

[w8liftinglady]

27. I try not to touch gross things that can harm mankind ;)

[YOY]

28. Sorry, I didn't fully realize just what I was asking of you!

:P

[OnyxCollie]

69. She's a Repub "fluffer". nt

[TayTay]

52. Do you think they have any idea

That they mocked wounded veterans? I thought of that pic of the Repubs with their degrading and insulting "bandages" when the Walter Reed scandal hit last year.

I wonder if any of them are even capable of seeing the outrage in what they did or if it is all the same to them?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=356441

[Ilsa]

54. They are too self-centered to realize how outrageous

and insulting their mocking of all wounded vets are. Or too stupid. Or just plain evil.

[Ian_rd]

58. No shit, blm. Awesome comment. And the answer is yes ...

... if that vet ever happens to run for office as a liberal, which on Republican Reality Planet revises his sacrifice to something devious and cowardly.

[blm]

64. Ah yes - they do WAIT till the vet runs for office as a Dem before they pile on the smear

It's the Republican Way.

[Pacifist Patriot]

3. Very cool! But....

I'd sure like it better if no one needed to be awarded a purple heart. :-(

[blm]

4. Of course. But at least he won't HAVE to endure being pinned by fascist chickenhawks.

.

[Pacifist Patriot]

13. Indeed. *shudder*

[noel711]

5. Outrageous! How can a patriot permit that to happen!

(grin)
I'll bet this doesn't make the MSM.

[malaise]

6. Wow that's great

I wonder why he didn't ask Gibson to pin the flag on his lapel?

[babylonsister]

7. Very nice; I'm sure Senator Kerry was honored. And the wounded

soldier won't have to sully himself with * or anyone like him. Plus a Sox game, home plate! Sweet.

[EFerrari]

9. It's nice to see Kerry getting the respect he deserves.

[jillan]

14. Very cool!

[undeterred]

15. Thanks to that soldier and thanks to John Kerry for their service.

[lebkuchen]

16. There won't be any "boos" this time.

Great story, but so sad that Bush has put our soldiers, marines, seamen, et al in so much jeopardy.

[Winterblues]

18. I didn't have that option

I didn't even get them pinned on by anyone. One was mailed to my parent's home and one was just handed out to me by the Company Clerk. :shrug:

[blm]

42. Please accept our love and respect, Winterblues.

.

[beachmom]

43. Apparently, this soldier telephoned the Senator's office, and they made it all happen.

And thank you for your service. Were you in Iraq?

[Winterblues]

46. No... I am quite ancient

I got out of the service over forty years ago..

[Divernan]

47. Thanks from me, too. Love that you have a plam tree avatar up in Alaska

And it looks like good things are gonna be happening there if the Anchorage Dem mayor can defeat
Senator Stevens.

I visited family in Juneau last September - wow! what a magnificent part of the world.

[TayTay]

51. Thank you for your service

And maybe we learned something in the years since you separated from the service. Maybe we learned that our veterans deserve to be honored for the risks they have taken for their country. Maybe people such as yourself helped teach us that. This nation owes a debt of gratitude for that lesson, it is humbling that we ever had to learn it in the first place.

It is my understanding that Sean Bannon was helped from Walter Reed to a hospital close to his home in MA in part due to the actions of Sen. Kerry. In return, PFC Bannon asked for Sen. Kerry to be the one to pin his Purple Heart medal and asked if the good Senator could "pull a few strings" for a fellow vet and have the short ceremony at Fenway Park. Sen. Kerry called the Red Sox and they were delighted and honored to do this and suggested that they do it on the Massachusetts holiday known as Patriots Day. (This State holiday commemorates the beginning of the American Revolution and the Battle of Lexington and Concord in 1775 when Citizen Solders took up arms in defense of their liberties.)

I think it was an honor on all sides. We should never confuse the war with the warriors.

[politicasista]

22. K&R

Thanks Senator Kerry and our brave troops. :patriot:

[suffragette]

29. Some pictures

http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/gallery/02_28_08_walter_reed/

From a visit the Red Sox made to Walter Reed

"Red Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield introduces himself to Private First Class Sean Bannon of Winthrop at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington on Wednesday following the Red Sox visit to the White House."




From http://www.politico.com/blogs/anneschroeder/0408/Sen_Kerry_pins_on_Sean_Bannons_purple_heart.html





Two patriots together.

Hopefully, someone else can find some better pics on some other website than Politico. It was the only place I could find a pic so far.

Really odd categorization of this article by them, under some section labeled "Shenanigans" and under the category of "Antics."


ETA - text for 1st picture

[lisa58]

31. okay - now I'm gonna cry

[suffragette]

33. Right there with ya

:hug:

[Divernan]

48. When you see how young US soldiers are - some of them look like they're 12.

Seeing them in airports when I travel - I saw one young woman who was only 5 feet tall, and many very slight young men - looked like they hadn't started shaving yet. But hey! As long as KBR and Halliburton can make millions, why end the war!?!?!? (sarcasm is too mild a term)

[blm]

49. And sad that many volunteered after 9-11 truly out of concern for their country.

And still others backed into it just to put food on their family's tables and shoes on their kids' feet.

[bicentennial_baby]

32. Here's a pic of them with Winthrop throwing 1st pitch:

[suffragette]

34. That's a great picture

[CTyankee]

37. Oh, that's so moving. I can't see from the picture, is he missing his lower right leg?

Kerry must have been so terribly moved by the soldier's request. His heart breaks for these men and women and he tries so hard to help them...

[blm]

41. Politico's MO is to treat Kerry like a clown - as IF uncovering IranContra, BCCI and CIA drugrunning

earned mainly resentment from the presscorps, not inspiration or praise.

[suffragette]

50. Even here, where the pictures and text were positive,

they had to diminish it by their categorization.
I think you're right that there is an odd resentment there. Just irks the hell outta me.

Wanted to post the pics because they were the 1st I could find.
Much prefer the one posted later in the thread, though. That one looks like it truly captures the moment

[blm]

53. odd is the best spin - I actually believe it is complicit behavior due to the fascist intent

of the media owners.

Bush's powerful friends didn't buy control of most media in the 80s and 90s so American people can learn the truth about their government or its lawmakers.

[suffragette]

65. I agree that complicit behavior is a better description

Here they took something meaningful, wrote about it in a neutral way, but categorized it in a way meant to diminish and trivialize. That's why I just posted the pics and not their text, even though the text was ok. But I had to bring up that categorization, because it bugged me.
You just spoke to the heart of why it did.

[karynnj]

63. Wow, did you notice the smack down Bannon's mom gave the jerk

who decided that this was the place to attack the Senator for speaking truth to power in 1971. Her response coming from her was amazing.

"My son Sean asked that the person who pinned his Purple Heart be a fellow soldier that had served in combat and have received the Purple Heart themselves. Senator Kerry has rec'd three along with a Bronze & Silver star. My son was honored to have Senator Kerry pin the medal on him. Senator Kerry was honored to do so. How sad to think that my son was seriously injured serving his country, and would do so again, should have to defend his decision to a few small minded people. Senator Kerry has been nothing but kind and helpful to my son Sean and other returning Massachusetts soldiers. Why don't you mention any of that. How about the fact that the Senator took the time to do this getting nothing in return. All he did was make Sean's ceremony much more memorable. Thank you Senator Kerry for all that you have done for my son and others like him!!!!"

[suffragette]

67. Hadn't seen that

Just sickening that someone would post the bile they did.

She gave a great response.

[Bongo Prophet]

35. .

:patriot:

[tchunter]

36. today he will be honored by a country and a nation

the USA and Red Sox Nation

[UndertheOcean]

38. kick

[MBS]

44. here's a video link

http://www.necn.com/Boston/New-England/Kerry-honors-Purple-Heart-recipient-at-Fenway-/1208808850.html

hat tip to beachmom-- thanks!

[progressoid]

45. Very nice. eom.

[Ilsa]

55. Thank you very much! That young man is awesome. So was Kerry.

I'm pissed, thinking about how much better off our country would be if he had not had the election stolen from him.

[blm]

70. That election was stolen from every Dem. I will NEVER trust McAuliffe Democrats ever again.

He ran the DNC after 2000s theft like he expected and WANTED to lose 2002 and 2004.

[xchrom]

56. ...

:applause:

[Coexist]

60. I am so moved by this.

[B Calm]

62. This will give heart burn to those flag waving right-wing couch warriors!

[elizfeelinggreat]

66. awesome