Today, July 4, I placed my flag in front of our house and each time I do this I get emotional - today was no different. After I finished my yard work, I came in the house and gazed out on the front lawn with the flag in the background and I thought about the time I was in the Navy, June 1950, aboard the USS Piedmont AD-17, a large destroyer repair ship, on our way to Okinawa where the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet was preparing for the invasion of Incheon, South Korea.
We had received our orders while we were in the Philippines telling us we were to proceed to Okinawa, Japan and join the 7th Fleet for the invasion. Later, while we were underway, a group of us sailors, only 17 to 20 years old, were relaxing on the fantail of the ship talking about our orders and the planned invasion, of course our flag was where it always flew from the mast on the fantail of the ship. Our conversation was mostly about what was right or wrong about this military action we were about to engage in. After talking about political things we knew very little about, we decided that right or wrong, whatever course our country was headed in, to a man we were for our country. It did not matter who was President or who was in Congress. In 1950 we knew no matter how sorry our President was, or how sorry our senators or representatives were, we knew they too loved our Country and would never defame our country or flag.
Today we have a candidate for President of the United States who has demonstrated through his many public appearances and associations with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Jr. of Trinity United Church, and Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan, and many others who have all shown their hatred of the United States government, that he believes the same as they do.
All I ask is that all you folks who are going to vote for Obama, please use some common sense and think about those few sailors on the fantail of a ship who did not know a Democrat from a Republican, but knew in their hearts that the love of their country was above all the most important requirement of our leaders - no questions asked!
Bill J. Conway,
Shawnee
