I’ve been home sick all day long, and I had a chance to watch the Medal of Honor ceremony celebrating the heroism of Navy SEAL Michael Monsoor. Learning about the act of “conspicuous gallantry” for which Monsoor was awarded the Medal of Honor left me in tears:
That September morning, Monsoor and a group of SEAL snipers took up position on a residential rooftop as part of an operation to push into a dangerous section of southern Ramadi. Four insurgents armed with AK-47 rifles came into view, and the SEAL snipers opened fire, killing one and wounding another. Loudspeakers from a mosque broadcast calls for insurgents to rally, and residents blocked off nearby roads with rocks.
Insurgents shot back at the SEAL position with automatic weapons from a moving vehicle and fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the building. The SEALs knew that more attacks were inevitable but continued their mission of protecting the troops clearing the area below, according to an official account.
Monsoor’s commander repositioned him in a small hidden location between two SEAL snipers on an outcropping of the roof, facing the most likely route of another insurgent attack. As Monsoor manned his gun, an insurgent lobbed up a hand grenade, which hit Monsoor in the chest and bounced onto the roof.
“Grenade!” Monsoor shouted. But the two snipers and another SEAL on the roof had no time to escape, as Monsoor was closest to the only exit. Monsoor dropped onto the grenade, smothering it with his body. It detonated, and Monsoor died about 30 minutes later from his wounds.
“He made an instantaneous decision to save our teammates. I immediately understood what happened, and tragically it made sense to me in keeping with the man I know, Mike Monsoor,” said Lt. Cmdr. Seth Stone, Monsoor’s platoon leader in Ramadi.
How do men like this come about? What values, aspirations, or experiences forge their courage? How many of us would take the easy exit rather than jump on the grenade, as Monsoor did, to mitigate the impact on our comrades?
8 Comments
April 8, 2008 at 11:53 pm
Courage is taught one day at a time by parents. Bravery in small things add up to the kind of selfless courage this young man displayed. The entire nation; even those who disagree with the President on the need for this war, should be proud of this young man and his family. Patriotism is alive and well!
April 8, 2008 at 11:58 pm
R. Stephens,
Thanks for visiting Iranian Freedom! And you are right: we owe his family so much.
April 10, 2008 at 1:53 am
You know, I’m not going to speak ill of a man that has passed away. What he did was an example of courage and selflessness, but we are missing the bigger picture here: Had the President not started this needless war, this would have never happened.
Furthermore, what about the Iraqis that we euphemistically refer to as “terrorists” or “insurgents.” They are fighting for their country too; they are humans too (and they’re dying far more tragically than any U.S. soldier is).
Maybe you can shed a tear for the 14 year old Iraqi girl who was gang raped by three marines, after which she watched them kill her hole family and then her.
No one wanted Mansoor or his platoon there to begin with, that’s why the residents were helping the Iraqi “insurgents.” And that’s why 90% of Sunnis believe it’s okay to kill U.S. soldiers. In fact, it’s considered patriotic!
So you can strain yourself trying to find instances of courage and patriotism to justify a war, but unlike you, I’m not willing to trade in humanity for patriotism.
Cheers,
barmakid
April 10, 2008 at 8:50 pm
A new low for you barmakid… Don’t you have any shame?
April 10, 2008 at 9:13 pm
Barmakid is a moron kid. Ignore him and he’ll go away.
Speaking of this American hero, I often think what extra-ordinary men and women of the US military often do. I appreciate their service to the freedom of mankind.
April 10, 2008 at 11:44 pm
Yes Yes, I’m a moron. And yes, the U.S. military is fighting for the “freedom of mankind.” Ha! It really takes a “willful suspense of disbelief” to actually think that the U.S. military is not pursuing its own interest and is instead fighting for the freedom of Iraqis, or mankind for that matter. Winston, ba een hame sen-o-salet hanooz een andeeshe-ha bavar meekoni…Va hanooz een harfha-ye bacheganeh meezani…. I think you’re the moron buddy - grow up.
And no, I have no shame when it comes to expressing my thoughts. I wished no ill will upon Mansoor, I simply was highlighting the skewed nature of your sympathies. I’m not interested in perpetuating the Hollywood-generated myth of the U.S. SEAL by adding my sympathies to an event that already elicits an inordinate amount of sympathy. He has my sympathies, but not nearly as much as the hundreds of thousands of Iraqis who have needlessly died - women, children, and the unborn alike.
Also, I’m quite aware that I’m posting on an Israeli supporter’s blog - so I’m not interested in corroborating your inflated perception of what the U.S. military does in the world.
Cheers,
barmakid
p.s. I noticed how you scolded other posters for calling people names, but not winston huh? Thats fine, if you want me to leave you don’t have to ignore me - just drop a line.
April 11, 2008 at 1:23 am
barmakid,
Don’t get sensitive champ! Just a short while ago I told you how much I appreciate intellectual opponents. I don’t want an echo chamber on Iranian Freedom.
At the same time, I had envisioned this particular post as an apolitical one because Monsoor’s heroism touched me at an apolitical level. I just don’t think at the moment he chose to gave up his life for his mates, the man was thinking “here’s to the victory of the American way of life against the evils of Islamic fundamentalism!”
As for namecalling:
1) You dish it out pretty heavily. I believe “retard” is a favorite of yours, and I’ve never called you on it even though I find it particularly distasteful as a special educator, especially coming from a self-proclaimed progressive.
2) The person I scolded that one time was being explicitly racist, which is on quite a different level in my mind than “moron.” Plus, I’ve gotten the impression that the back-and-forth between you and Winston is an ongoing, normal, semi-joking thing on this and other blogs, so it’s not appropriate for me to call Winston on this particular instance.
July 13, 2008 at 11:33 am
It no use to show internationally who some criminals in Iran had been hanged. If you look at the US histroy, or if you make yourself a trouble to SEE media, you will find many crimes by the US government day and night. Then such a question will come to your mind em, why media do not pay attention to the US crimes. The answer is that the media are americans. Then i advice you to SEE truth at both sides, and try to uncover the US crimes too!
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