O yes, I saw the Cowboys win under their new coach, Jason Garrett. They played with the enthusiasm of a High School team. They didn't kill themselves with mistakes. They made some big plays, and they won.It was a nice win for a team going no where. That is NOT why I am "stunned and in shock". That came when I switched to "Sixty Minutes" and heard and saw some of the more dramatic footage from the War on terror.
It was all about a unit from 173 Airborne Brigade who were trapped by Taliban while on patrol. They were surrounded from two sides and were being hit by everything the enemy could throw at them. Some men fell. Others were wounded or received hits to their armor. A reporter recorded some of the events and sounds. Someone heard on the Taliban radio they wanted a body. How they would use it is anyone's guess. A Sergeant Brennan was dropped by the intense fire. Soon three Taliban were dragging and carrying his body away. Staff Sgt. Sal Guinta saw what was happening. He charged the enemy through intense fire. He felt two rounds hit him. They hit armor instead of Guinta's flesh. He was firing at the three men. One of them dropped. The other two began to run and leave the body behind. I think he may have hit another one of them. He had arrived at his friend's side. The man had a head wound but was still alive. He could recognize a fellow soldier had come to his rescue. As Guinta said it, "part of his mouth was in his mouth". The fire fight lasted about three minutes. They got the wounded men back to a hospital. That night Sgt Brennan died in surgery.
The men were talking about the valor seen in that firefight. Word quickly spread. When it was a certainty this had happened, Staff Sergeant Sal Guinta was recommended for the Medal of Honor. That is the highest award offered by the military. There had not been a living soldier earning one since Viet Nam. One was awared to Sgt. Guinta.
One of his comments this evening was this: "I have never given everything". He then said, "I am not at peace with that (the medal) with so many people doing so much". "I was in a position to do what needed to be done and I did it.". He called himself "mediocre.".
I was stunned and in shock for I had just watched men of greater physical talent beating on their chests and pointing at themselves after making a tackle or catching a pass. Men making millions were waving their arms for applause and keeping the football THEY had caught for a touchdown. Men making hundreds lay in the dust of a foreign land while determined enemy sought to kill them, and us if they could. The lights went out at the stadium for a few moments. Announcers admitted it was scary. There were 80,000 people sitting in a darkened stadium wondering...just wondering what might be next. The lights came on again. The game resumed and young millionaires congratulated themselves for their feats....while in a far away country gallant men and women making hundreds walked the strange and dangerous trails, awaiting another ambush or buried explosive device. I am still stunned and in shock.
