Red Friday - Support the Troops

Support the Troops ~ Support the Families

Multās per gentēs et multa per aequora vectus

adveniō hās miserās, frāter, ad īnferiās,

ut tē postrēmō dōnārem mūnere mortis

et mūtam nēquīquam alloquerer cinerem,

quandoquidem fortūna mihī tētē abstulit ipsum.

heu miser indignē frāter adēmpte mihi,

nunc tamen intereā haec, prīscō quae mōre parentum

trādita sunt trīstī mūnere ad īnferiās,

accipe frāternō multum mānantia flētū,

atque in perpetuum, frāter, avē atque valē.

Carried through many nations and over many seas,

I arrive, brother, for these miserable funeral rites,

so that I might finally grant the service of the dead

and speak to your silent ashes pointlessly,

since Fortune has deprived me of you in the flesh.

Ah, poor brother, undeservedly lost to me,

now at least for the meantime, these things

which in the time-honored way of our ancestors

are handed down in mournful service to the rites

receive, utterly sodden by a brother's tears

and for eternity, brother, a tribute and farewell.

~~Gaius Valerius Catullus~~

May Peace and Comfort find your loved ones in the days to come, brave soldier, and may they feel the support flowing to them from all over our country.

This Morning's News:

A Canadian soldier has been killed by an improvised explosive device while on foot patrol southwest of Kandahar city, Afghanistan.


[Edits to prevent this blog coming up on a google search for the soldier's name] 

{The Private}, 24, was born in Richmond Hill, Ont.  He was a member of the 1st Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, based in Edmonton, and was reportedly just days away from finishing his tour of duty.


[He} was killed around 8 p.m. local time Thursday while on patrol near the village of Nakhonay in the Panjwai District, about 15 kilometres southwest of Kandahar city, military officials said.


Until recently, Taliban insurgents walked the streets in the community openly and armed, CBC journalist Darrow MacIntyre reported. But over the past several months, Canadian soldiers — including {The Private} — have established a strong presence in the area, driving most of the Taliban out of the area.

Despite the progress, the area is riddled with roadside bombs, and Canadian soldiers find them on an almost daily basis, MacIntyre said.

"His platoon brothers and friends will remember {him} as a dependable and generous man with a quick wit and great sense of humour, which was exemplified by his awesome moustache," said Col. Simon Hetherington, deputy commander of Task Force Kandahar.

"He was a highly skilled soldier who loved his job and whose positive outlook spread to all those around him."

His death brings to 144 the number of Canadian Forces members who have died in the Afghan mission since it began in 2002.


Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/05/14/afghanistan-soldier-killed.html#ixzz0nu3RQlVa