May the good lord be with you
Down every road you roam
And may sunshine and happiness
Surround you when you’re far from home
And may you grow to be proud
Dignified and true
And do unto others
As you’d have done to you
Be courageous and be brave
And in my heart you’ll always stay
Forever young.
    ~ From "Forever Young," by Rod Stewart

A mother of three whose never-say-quit attitude allowed her to defy prejudice and longstanding tradition to serve her country as a mechanic. A 19-year-old who epitomized courage and strength to beat incredible odds and survive almost five months after being grievously wounded. A man so fiercely loyal to his country that he decided at age 10 to spend his life protecting it, whatever the cost.

Follow me below the fold to read about and remember these special people: Sgt. Tracy Birkman, Pfc. Duncan Crookston, and Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Kahler.

GOOD RECYCLER: You fill up the recycle bin every week with cans, bottles, and jars.
 
NOT SO GOOD: You give the recycle bin to the kids to use as a toboggan.
  ~ Grinning Planet

Environmentalists and all of you awesome Kossacks who are active locally, I really need your help.

(This is NOT a candidate diary!)

The new year's first casualties have been reported. The families of Sgt. Reno S. Lacerna, PFC Joseph R. Berlin Jr., and PFC Brian L. Gorham ended 2007 with the worst news imaginable. 2008 is only a few days old, but for these families, it is guaranteed to be the most horrible of their lives.

Please follow me across the fold to remember these men.

Please also visit part 1.

They were sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, friends and colleagues – and on this New Year’s Eve, we remember those service members who have died this year as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. This remembrance, from the "I Got the News Today" (IGTNT) team, is more than a list. It’s a chronicle of lives and dreams cut short, and a glimpse into the grief that their survivors live with every day.

We've chosen "We Remember Them," by Rabbis Sylvan Kamens and Jack Riemer to help us commemorate the lives lost this year. Please click on the hyperlinked dates to read the stories behind the names; I know I'm not the only one to cry while writing them. Or while reading them.

Our heartfelt condolences go out to all those who knew and loved the fallen, and who miss them so much.

Special thanks to the IGTNT team for their assistance with these year-end diaries.

May 2008 bring fewer names and more peace.

Please also visit SisTwo's diary, IGTNT -- I Miss You tonight. Thanks to all who bear witness with us so faithfully!

When I read about the life of the Army Ranger we honor today--Sgt. Steven C. Ganczewski--all I could think about was how much he epitomized the words of John Donne’s poem, "Death Be Not Proud", in which Donne defiantly tells Death why it can never have dominion over humanity.

That same spirit of determination and defiance in the face of extreme challenge characterized the life of Steven Ganczewski. Join me over the fold to have a look at Donne’s exquisite poem, and then celebrate the life of this exceptional man who lived its words.

I am posting this diary for Chacounne

We have until 10am tomorrow!

The vote is on Tuesday at 10am.

If you would be so kind, please recommend this diary, so we can get the word out and stop this nomination.

If he passes SJC, I am committed to going to Washington to lobby the whole Senate to stop this nomination.

The Senate Judiciary Committee votes tomorrow on Michael Mukasay’s nomination as Attorney General. Senators Chuck Schumer and Dianne Feinstein have said that they will vote to confirm him.

We have until 10am tomorrow to change their minds.

Why does it matter so much to me?

This diary was co-authored by greenies and twilight falling.

What ever happened to the young man's heart
Swallowed by pain, as he slowly fell apart
    ~ From the song "Shinedown-45", by Shinedown

Almost every day an IGTNT diary honors those soldiers, Marines, airmen, sailors, and Guardsmen who have fallen in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Department of Defense announces the death of each military person who loses their life in the combat zones. But there is a group of military personnel who have died from injuries sustained in Iraq or Afghanistan and yet are ignored by the DoD.

They took their own lives after returning home.

HERE RESTS IN
HONORED GLORY
AN AMERICAN
SOLDIER
KNOWN BUT TO GOD
    ~ Inscription on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

It saddens me to see how many of our military men and women perish with little or no media notice of their passing, even by their hometown news organizations. Except for their names, they are "unknown soldiers" to most of us.

The man we honor today, Spc. Micheal Brown, is such an "unknown soldier"; sadly, I was unable to find much information about him. Yet however much or little information we can find about our fallen military people, we know something critical about them: they willingly offered their lives for their country. And for their service, their devotion, and their sacrifices—and for those of their families and friends—we honor them. Unknown, perhaps...but never forgotten.

If you would indeed behold the spirit of death, open your heart wide unto the body of life.
For life and death are one, even as the river and the sea are one.
In the depth of your hopes and desires lies your silent knowledge of the beyond;
And like seeds dreaming beneath the snow your heart dreams of spring.

Trust the dreams, for in them is hidden the gate to eternity.
Your fear of death is but the trembling of the shepherd when he stands before the king whose hand is to be laid upon him in honour.
Is the shepherd not joyful beneath his trembling, that he shall wear the mark of the king?
Yet is he not more mindful of his trembling?

For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun?
And what is to cease breathing, but to free the breath from its restless tides, that it may rise and expand and seek God unencumbered?
Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing.
And when you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb.
And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance.
    ~ Excerpted from "On Death", by Khalil Gibran

Three more American service people are dead. Three more families are torn asunder. Three more children will grow up with dim memories of a parent instead of the real thing.

Writing tributes for these soldiers, sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Guardsmen is hard. Every story is different, but every one shares in common the tragedy of a life lost too soon—the life of an exceptional person, with so much potential, who wanted to do the right thing for his or her country, his or her family, his or her future, and who was willing to offer his or her own life to see the right thing done. Doing justice for such people is a daunting task.

The two soldiers and one Marine we remember today—Sgt. Michael E. Tayaotao, PFC Shawn D. Hensel, and Staff Sgt. Alicia A. Birchett—shared something else in common: they all wanted the people of Iraq and the people of the US to enjoy peace, and they died working for that hope.

Hope is in short supply these days, particularly for the families and friends who have had to say goodbye to loved ones who made the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet remembering the fallen is an act of hope, as it preserves the enduring memories and spirits of those who have gone. Anne Bronte referred to this in a poem as "the hope with which I cannot part."

With the hope that their memories will sustain and inspire those they leave behind, we remember today the lives of five brave soldiers who have fallen in Iraq: Pfc. Matthew M. Murchison, Spc. Charles E. Leonard Jr., Sgt. Bradley W. Marshall, Spc. Daniel F. Reyes, and Sgt. 1st Class Travis S. Bachman.

Tonight, we pay tribute to two more soldiers who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their country in Iraq: Sgt. Stephen R. Maddies and Cpl. Jason M. Kessler. We also hold in our thoughts and our hearts their families and friends, who are grieving the loss of their loved ones.

The Jewish people use an expression to refer to good people who have passed on: may their memory be a blessing. Although different people believe different things about what, if anything, happens after death, "may their memory be a blessing" reflects a more universal sentiment: that the memories of those who have gone can still positively affect and influence those who remain. It is a sentiment of hope and an affirmation of life in the midst of the pain and grief that accompany a profound loss.

In that spirit—either secular or religious, as you prefer—let us remember together these two brave soldiers. May their memories be a blessing, as their lives were.

With the devastating loss of so many military personnel recently, I’ve found myself feeling frantic over the loss of all the potential. Every one of these people still had so much of their lives ahead of them; so much love and laughter and tears and joy and accomplishments to experience and share.

The two soldiers we remember today—Sgt. Courtney D. Finch and PFC Juan S. Restrepo—are among those who left behind dreams that will now remain unfulfilled, and families and friends whose lives will never be the same. And yet the hope and promise of their lives still shines on. In tribute to the beautiful hope and dreams that they bore in their hearts, I offer a deeply moving song (from the original Romeo and Juliet). Though the protagonists sang it out of a belief that they would live long enough to realize the promise it contains (sadly, like Sgt. Finch and PFC Restrepo, they did not), it serves as an equally poignant testament to undying love and perpetual dreams, and the neverending hope that someday, somehow, the promise will be realized. (Jump below the fold for this beautiful song.)

It’s true. I’ve picked up a cyberstalker. He reads DKos. Near as I can tell, he found me here. In the past month, since I originally signed up, he has obtained two of my email addresses (despite the fact that I have never posted them publically), sent me vicious email messages, fooled me into installing a Trojan horse on my computer, hijacked my browser, spoofed a friend’s email address to make his poison pen letters more potent, and nearly got me banned by my mail provider by using my address to harrass someone else. He reads my DKos posts and has referred to them in his messages to me.

You might wonder, as I have, why the heck anyone in their right mind would bother stalking a DKos newbie. I truly have no idea. I’m an absolute nobody here. My posts are few. I’ve avoided altercations. My only contributions, to date, have been some IGTNT diaries (ooooo, EEEEvil!).

But I’m not here to whine about my stalker. I’m here to warn you about yours. Because if this can happen to me, believe me, it can happen to you.

As I read about the lives of the Marine and two sailors we honor today—Lance Cpl. Shawn V. Starkovich, Chief Petty Officer Patrick L. Wade, and Petty Officer First Class Jeffrey L. Chaney—I was overwhelmed by how fearlessly they led their lives. They were young, but they crammed so much living into their few years among us.

Their lives brought back to me the wise words of the Shawnee warrior Tecumseh, who counselled people to live their lives in such a way that they could face death, whenever it comes, with no fear and no regrets. It’s impossible not to have regrets about a life that ends too soon. But these three men had no other cause to feel regret. They truly lived their lives to the fullest and strived to be the best people they could possibly be.

Follow me below the fold to read about the inspiring lives of these three men. (My favorite quote from Tecumseh is there as well.)

Our Democratic leadership finally heard our voices and forced the Republicans into a filibuster on the Levin-Reed Amendment, which will require redeployment of troops out of Iraq within 120 days of enactment. As a result, the Senate has been debating Levin-Reed since 3:15 PM yesterday afternoon. We owe them our thanks for finally exposing the obstructionist Republicans for what they are: anti-troop, pro-Bush, and frankly, unAmerican.

We Kossacks have been there for every minute, thanks to a heroic and intrepid bunch of livebloggers. Kudos to every one of you who have participated, as diarists and commenters--you rock!

Our post-vote coverage continues below the fold...

I wasn’t going to commit no newbie gaffes. No sir—not me!

I was determined not to make seasoned Kossacks roll their eyes at my posts. I wouldn't say things that spurred pootie pictures or Troll House Cookie recipes. I wouldn't get troll rated, ostracized, stomped on, mocked, or warned. No one would feel compelled to remark pointedly about my UID!

They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.
...
As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain,
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.

  ~ Excerpted from "To The Fallen," by Lawrence Binyon (September 1914)

We remember today the lives of five more soldiers who will not grow old: PFC Jason E. Dore, Col. Jon M. Lockey, Cpl. Jeremy D. Allbaugh, Lance Cpl. Steven A. Stacy, and Lance Cpl. Angel R. Ramirez.