GO NAVY! BEAT ARMY!

Know Your Medal of Honor Recipients:

Colonel William A. Jones, III (US Air Force) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on September 1, 1968, near Dong Hoi, North Vietnam. His citation reads:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Col. Jones distinguished himself as the pilot of an A-1H Skyraider aircraft near Dong Hoi, North Vietnam. On that day, as the on-scene commander in the attempted rescue of a downed U.S. pilot, Col. Jones' aircraft was repeatedly hit by heavy and accurate antiaircraft fire. On one of his low passes, Col. Jones felt an explosion beneath his aircraft and his cockpit rapidly filled with smoke. With complete disregard of the possibility that his aircraft might still be burning, he unhesitatingly continued his search for the downed pilot. On this pass, he sighted the survivor and a multiple-barrel gun position firing at him from near the top of a karst formation. He could not attack the gun position on that pass for fear he would endanger the downed pilot. Leaving himself exposed to the gun position, Col. Jones attacked the position with cannon and rocket fire on 2 successive passes. On his second pass, the aircraft was hit with multiple rounds of automatic weapons fire. One round impacted the Yankee Extraction System rocket mounted directly behind the headrest, igniting the rocket. His aircraft was observed to burst into flames in the center fuselage section, with flames engulfing the cockpit area. He pulled the extraction handle, jettisoning the canopy. The influx of fresh air made the fire burn with greater intensity for a few moments, but since the rocket motor had already burned, the extraction system did not pull Col. Jones from the aircraft. Despite searing pains from severe burns sustained on his arms, hands, neck, shoulders, and face, Col. Jones pulled his aircraft into a climb and attempted to transmit the location of the downed pilot and the enemy gun position to the other aircraft in the area. His calls were blocked by other aircraft transmissions repeatedly directing him to bail out and within seconds his transmitters were disabled and he could receive only on 1 channel. Completely disregarding his injuries, he elected to fly his crippled aircraft back to his base and pass on essential information for the rescue rather than bail out. Col. Jones successfully landed his heavily damaged aircraft and passed the information to a debriefing officer while on the operating table. As a result of his heroic actions and complete disregard for his personal safety, the downed pilot was rescued later in the day. Col. Jones' profound concern for his fellow man at the risk of his life, above and beyond the call of duty, are in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Air Force and reflect great credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of his country.

Corporal Absalom Jordan (US Army) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on April 6, 1865, at Sailors Creek, Virginia. His citation reads:

Capture of flag.

Sergeant George Jordan (US Army) received his Medal of Honor for his actions on May 14, 1880, at Fort Tularosa, North Mexico and on August 12, 1881, at Carrizo Canyon, North Mexico. His citation reads:

While commanding a detachment of 25 men at Fort Tularosa, N. Mex., repulsed a force of more than 100 Indians. At Carrizo Canyon, N . Mex., while commanding the right of a detachment of 19 men, on 12 August 1881, he stubbornly held his ground in an extremely exposed position and gallantly forced back a much superior number of the enemy, preventing them from surrounding the command.


It wasn’t that long ago that the Army/Navy series was all tied up at 49-49-7. After Navy’s win this past Saturday, the Midshipmen now lead the series 57-49-7. Navy has won 11 straight, though I have to admit the past two games have been a lot closer than I’d like (the win score this year was 17-13 and Army was waaaaay too close to winning). I also have to admit that a small part of me feels bad for the Army players (especially the seniors) after each Navy win (at least the past 6 or so). It’s got to be hard to work as hard as they do only to fall short against their biggest rival each year. Still… it’s just a small part of me that feels bad. A much larger part of me feels good for the Navy players who manage to keep the streak alive. That, and Sonny pulls for Army… so it’s always nice when my team beats his (over and over and over and over).

By the way… a note to CBS: Just because a football player is crying after a game doesn’t mean you have to show it. You want to flash it on there to show “how much the game means to these guys”, fine. But you don’t need to keep showing it. The guy was sad. He was crushed. We get it. But you aren’t doing him any favors by showing it over and over and over.


The I’m just sayin… Weekly Weigh-In

Greg 235

Mary Ruth 52

Susie 31

Daniel 28