WHEN in the course of human Events, it becomes necessary….
Pensacola – Marines, Sailors Line Road to Salute Family of Slain Naval Officer…
byVanderleunonDecember 10, 2019
The video was shot from the parent’s vehicle – No words, only sorrow, and so much pride!
HT: Gordon Scott who Notes The video shows the family as they ride through Pensacola NAS behind the hearse. As they pass through the gate, you can see a few people on each side lined up at attention, saluting. Then they get about 200 yards in, and from then on there is a continuous line of sailors in dress blues, on both sides of the road, saluting. This goes on for what must be two miles, as it takes nearly ten minutes for the vehicle to traverse the route. No one was ordered to show up. The sailors just did. Thousands of them.
Hundreds of sailors and Marines stood in long lines on both sides of a road at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, in a silent and moving tribute Sunday as the parents of slain Ensign Joshua Kaleb Watson drove onto the base.
Benjamin and Sheila Watson posted a 10-minute Facebook video of their slow ride past the saluting service members. The only sounds on the video are Sheila Watson’s sobs. At one point, Benjamin Watson, at the wheel, reaches across to hold his wife’s hand.
Watson, 23, of Enterprise, Alabama, a recent Naval Academy graduate and pilot in training; Airman Mohammed Sameh Haitham, 19, of St. Petersburg, Florida; and Airman Apprentice Cameron Scott Walters, 21, of Richmond Hill, Georgia, were killed Sunday in a shooting rampage at the base.
Watson’s family said he was shot five times as he tried to take down the perpetrator; he died later of his wounds at Baptist Hospital.
In a Facebook posting, his brother, Adam Watson, said, “After being shot multiple times, he made it outside and told the first response team where the shooter was, and those details were invaluable” in ending the incident.
But it’s a lovely fabulous idea and let all lefty democrat traitorous bastards… well, you know.
Jane MataczynskiDecember 10, 2019, 9:09 PM
How utterly heartbreaking, devastating, yet glorifying. I read your stuff daily but never comment. This was too much. Ah, the sorrow and glory of being human. He lived up to the best we all wish we could achieve.
Underscores the tragedy of the event. Gunned down, on base, by a foreign aviation student. ahem.
The navy knows how to close ranks. Don’t dare get on the receiving end of their terrible retribution.
With honor and respect to the honored dead, who did indeed die in battle. A strange, wide, rancorous battle. We obfuscate about it now, for God knows what stupid reasons. Make no mistake: history will tie this all together as the great war between violent muslims and the West. It will be read about along with the Crusades, the Battle of Tours, the Muslim Conquests, the Barbary Pirates…
Fletcher ChristianDecember 11, 2019, 2:05 AM
Fred Z: I don’t know who was first, but the inhabitants of Wootton Bassett in Wiltshire, UK did something similar for the people killed in Afghanistan and later Iraq. It just so happened that the drive from the base being used for this to the hospital whose morgue was being used went right down the high street of this fairly small town; eventually, the route was lined with thousands of civilians every time a returning body was being so transported.
ghostsniperDecember 11, 2019, 4:49 AM
“We obfuscate about it now, for God knows what stupid reasons.”
========
First off, it’s “they” not “we” and the “they” are pathetic excuses for men that are more concerned with looting the treasury.
When there are a few spots of rust on the body your vehicle can be repaired but when the rot encases the frame and entire drive train there is no cure, only a final solution.
Ken BerggrenDecember 11, 2019, 6:00 AM
Did you notice it was raining, too? They stood at attention in the rain.
Donald SensingDecember 11, 2019, 7:10 AM
I retired from the Army in 1995, and this still teared me up. After I was appointed pastor of the first church I served in 1997, my superintendent asked me what the difference was between serving in the Army and serving in the church.
I replied that in the Army there was greater love, greater community, a higher sense of mission and purpose, far more loyalty to one another, greater respect for others, and a much higher willingness to sacrifice for the greater good. “In fact,” I concluded, “if not for the fact that we kill people, the Army would be the kingdom of God come in power.”
He had no response.
JackDecember 11, 2019, 8:15 AM
No muslim, of any GD kind, should be permitted to train with the US military on its home soil. And now, after this, the US should return every one of those misogynistic, Allah worshipping goat fuckers to their lovely homes in Saudi Arabia, call in all loans and leave them to whatever tender mercies await them from their brothers at home.
DeanaDecember 11, 2019, 8:29 AM
This family deserved better. Their son deserved better.
I can’t get through this video without tears streaming down my face but I’m just so angry! Why in the world Ian this country allowing any Muslim foreign national into flight training? Especially from Saudi Arabia? It’s as if no one making policy remembers Sept. 11.
Our senators and representatives always have security. They work under armed guards. But our nation is ok with denying the military personnel the ability to defend them selves. It’s obscene. I’m so furious at Congress and Washington DC in general.
Everyone is expendable except them.
This family, their son, should never have been put in this position.
timDecember 11, 2019, 9:45 AM
Sorry for your loss to the Watson family and friends.
Thank you Ensign Watson, you served us well and we failed you.
Thanks for posting Gerard.
I think Deana nails the greatest problem with the way our present day politicians think: “Everyone is expendable except them.”
Teri PittmanDecember 11, 2019, 11:42 AM
If we are talking about previous tributes like this, folks lined the train tracks when Lincoln’s body was returned home.
No family should go through this, especially military families. They should have been safe on the base, not disarmed. That policy needs to be changed now. And we can train foreign pilots at their home bases.
Boat GuyDecember 11, 2019, 11:45 AM
You need to include most of the “chain of command” in your assessment of ” politicians”. Our military bases and posts remain Victim Disarmament Zones. DoD should have changed that after Fort Hood ( if indeed such ever should have been regulation in the first place). I am willing to places large wager that said chain will not permit DoD personnel to defend themselves unless the CinC issues the order.
Tragic waste of three more lives, the blood is on the hands of the Navy brass.I
As an aside the base I last worked on had people military and civilian employees rendering hits whenever casualties were flown in.
Auntie AnalogueDecember 11, 2019, 3:28 PM
Rest in peace, my good shipmates.
And if I hear one more time that “We fight them over there so we don’t have to fight them over here,” I should spit flaming venom at whomever will have regurgitated that bloody nonsense.
Snakepit KansasDecember 12, 2019, 5:16 AM
I arrived at the cemetery for my Dad’s recent burial thinking I had been all cried out. I was the first of the family to arrive and the Air Force Honor Guard was already there standing in formation. Don’t know how long, but long enough for snow to have set on their right shoulders and covers. Human statues. Yep, there were more tears in the well. Taps from a real trumpet, not a recorder. I noticed the guy warming up the mouthpiece just before he played. The folding of the flag and presentation to my mother will never be forgotten.
As you know very well (I am bold to wax here given your powers with words and my own lacking) the army has the oldest legacy on earth, that of men under arms. It’s a subculture, but everyone belongs to a subculture of some kind. My main point is: civilians have never been capable of understanding military veterans, and that bridge is nearly impossible to cross. Things like this video, a silent display of gigantic heart, and your powerful words to your congregant about the quality of the army organization, are powerful ways to get the message out. The reasons we respect our soldiers are too deep, and too many to enumerate.
Real World Address for Donations, Mash Notes and Hate Mail
Gerard Van der Leun
1692 MANGROVE AVE
APT 379
Chico, Ca 95926
Green Pants Interior by Klahn
Who Am I? by Carl Sandburg
My head knocks against the stars.
My feet are on the hilltops.
My finger-tips are in the valleys and shores of universal life.
Down in the sounding foam of primal things I reach my hands and play with pebbles of destiny.
I have been to hell and back many times.
I know all about heaven, for I have talked with God.
I dabble in the blood and guts of the terrible.
I know the passionate seizure of beauty
And the marvelous rebellion of man at all signs reading “Keep Off.”
My name is Truth and I am the most elusive captive in the universe.
Duty, Beauty, Liberty, Country, Honor, Family, Faith — Plus a few simple easy to follow rules for guys
Men saw the stars at the edge of the sea
They thought great thoughts about liberty
Poets wrote down words that did fit
Writers wrote books
Thinkers thought about it
Take it where you find it
Can’t leave it alone
You will find a purpose
To carry it on
Mainly when you find it
Your heart will be strong
About it
Many’s the road I have walked upon
Many’s the hour between dusk and dawn
Many’s the time
Many’s the mile
I see it all now
Through the eyes of a child
Take it where you find it
Can’t leave it alone
You will find a purpose
To carry it on
Mainly when you find it
Your heart will be strong
About it
[Chorus]
Lost dreams and found dreams
In America
In America
In America
Lost dreams and found dreams
In America
In America
In America
And close your eyes
Leave it all for a while
Leave the world
And your worries behind
You will build on whatever is real
And wake up each day
To a new waking dream
Take it where you find it
Can’t leave it alone
You will find a purpose
To carry it on
Mainly when you find it
Your heart will be strong
About it
[Chorus]
Change, change come over
Change come over
Talkin’ about a change
Change, change
Change come over, now
Change, change, change come over
I’m gonna walk down the street
Until I see
My shining light
I’m gonna walk down the street
Until I see
My shining light
I’m gonna walk down the street
Until I see
My shining light
I’m gonna walk down the street
Until I see
My shining light
I see my light
See my light
See my shining light
I see my light
See my light
See my shining light
Gerard Van der Leun
Comments on this entry are closed.
“A real man will never let his fear of death overpower his honor, his sense of duty to his country and his innate manhood”. George S.Patton Jr.
I don’t know if we Canadians were first to do this.
https://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/canadas-highway-of-heroes-marks-the-return-of-every-canadian-soldier-killed-in-afghanistan
But it’s a lovely fabulous idea and let all lefty democrat traitorous bastards… well, you know.
How utterly heartbreaking, devastating, yet glorifying. I read your stuff daily but never comment. This was too much. Ah, the sorrow and glory of being human. He lived up to the best we all wish we could achieve.
Underscores the tragedy of the event. Gunned down, on base, by a foreign aviation student. ahem.
The navy knows how to close ranks. Don’t dare get on the receiving end of their terrible retribution.
With honor and respect to the honored dead, who did indeed die in battle. A strange, wide, rancorous battle. We obfuscate about it now, for God knows what stupid reasons. Make no mistake: history will tie this all together as the great war between violent muslims and the West. It will be read about along with the Crusades, the Battle of Tours, the Muslim Conquests, the Barbary Pirates…
Fred Z: I don’t know who was first, but the inhabitants of Wootton Bassett in Wiltshire, UK did something similar for the people killed in Afghanistan and later Iraq. It just so happened that the drive from the base being used for this to the hospital whose morgue was being used went right down the high street of this fairly small town; eventually, the route was lined with thousands of civilians every time a returning body was being so transported.
“We obfuscate about it now, for God knows what stupid reasons.”
========
First off, it’s “they” not “we” and the “they” are pathetic excuses for men that are more concerned with looting the treasury.
When there are a few spots of rust on the body your vehicle can be repaired but when the rot encases the frame and entire drive train there is no cure, only a final solution.
Did you notice it was raining, too? They stood at attention in the rain.
I retired from the Army in 1995, and this still teared me up. After I was appointed pastor of the first church I served in 1997, my superintendent asked me what the difference was between serving in the Army and serving in the church.
I replied that in the Army there was greater love, greater community, a higher sense of mission and purpose, far more loyalty to one another, greater respect for others, and a much higher willingness to sacrifice for the greater good. “In fact,” I concluded, “if not for the fact that we kill people, the Army would be the kingdom of God come in power.”
He had no response.
No muslim, of any GD kind, should be permitted to train with the US military on its home soil. And now, after this, the US should return every one of those misogynistic, Allah worshipping goat fuckers to their lovely homes in Saudi Arabia, call in all loans and leave them to whatever tender mercies await them from their brothers at home.
This family deserved better. Their son deserved better.
I can’t get through this video without tears streaming down my face but I’m just so angry! Why in the world Ian this country allowing any Muslim foreign national into flight training? Especially from Saudi Arabia? It’s as if no one making policy remembers Sept. 11.
Our senators and representatives always have security. They work under armed guards. But our nation is ok with denying the military personnel the ability to defend them selves. It’s obscene. I’m so furious at Congress and Washington DC in general.
Everyone is expendable except them.
This family, their son, should never have been put in this position.
Sorry for your loss to the Watson family and friends.
Thank you Ensign Watson, you served us well and we failed you.
Thanks for posting Gerard.
I think Deana nails the greatest problem with the way our present day politicians think: “Everyone is expendable except them.”
If we are talking about previous tributes like this, folks lined the train tracks when Lincoln’s body was returned home.
No family should go through this, especially military families. They should have been safe on the base, not disarmed. That policy needs to be changed now. And we can train foreign pilots at their home bases.
You need to include most of the “chain of command” in your assessment of ” politicians”. Our military bases and posts remain Victim Disarmament Zones. DoD should have changed that after Fort Hood ( if indeed such ever should have been regulation in the first place). I am willing to places large wager that said chain will not permit DoD personnel to defend themselves unless the CinC issues the order.
Tragic waste of three more lives, the blood is on the hands of the Navy brass.I
As an aside the base I last worked on had people military and civilian employees rendering hits whenever casualties were flown in.
Rest in peace, my good shipmates.
And if I hear one more time that “We fight them over there so we don’t have to fight them over here,” I should spit flaming venom at whomever will have regurgitated that bloody nonsense.
I arrived at the cemetery for my Dad’s recent burial thinking I had been all cried out. I was the first of the family to arrive and the Air Force Honor Guard was already there standing in formation. Don’t know how long, but long enough for snow to have set on their right shoulders and covers. Human statues. Yep, there were more tears in the well. Taps from a real trumpet, not a recorder. I noticed the guy warming up the mouthpiece just before he played. The folding of the flag and presentation to my mother will never be forgotten.
Wow, Rev. Sensing! Well said.
As you know very well (I am bold to wax here given your powers with words and my own lacking) the army has the oldest legacy on earth, that of men under arms. It’s a subculture, but everyone belongs to a subculture of some kind. My main point is: civilians have never been capable of understanding military veterans, and that bridge is nearly impossible to cross. Things like this video, a silent display of gigantic heart, and your powerful words to your congregant about the quality of the army organization, are powerful ways to get the message out. The reasons we respect our soldiers are too deep, and too many to enumerate.
Keep it going.
Snakepit: my respects and condolences.