"Our national determination to defend freedom at the borders where it's threatened is fully matched by the quality and spirit of the more than 2 million soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines who proudly wear the American uniform.
I received another letter from one of our ambassadors in Europe. He wrote that a 19-year-old trooper in our armored cavalry had asked that he send me a message. It was: "Tell the President we're proud to be here, and we ain't scared of nothing."
In James Michener's book "The Bridges at Toko-Ri," he writes of an officer waiting through the night for the return of planes to a carrier as dawn is coming on. And he asks, "Where do we find such men?" Well, we find them where we've always found them. They are the product of the freest society man has ever known. They make a commitment to the military—make it freely, because the birthright we share as Americans is worth defending. God bless America."Last week in Afghanistan a Ranger unit was ambushed as it surrounded a home containing a High Value Target. Several military bloggers have written about it including Ranger Up's Rhinoden, and Blackside Concepts. Today, a friend forwarded me a moving piece by Guardian of Valor. In it, one of the Rangers severely wounded in the attack salutes his (our) Regimental Commander after receiving the award of the Purple Heart (picture linked below from the Guardian of Valor blog).
Immediately the phrase from Michener's book, quoted by Reagan popped into my head. "Where do we find such men?"
I know exactly where to find them. The 75th Ranger Regiment. RLTW!
Read more at the American Presidency Project:Ronald Reagan: Radio Address to the Nation on Armed Forces Dayhttp://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=42525#ixzz2hjHuuF00
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