D.I. Smith 🇺🇸

What an interesting read........... On Jeopardy the other night, the final question asked: “How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the Tomb of the Unknown?” All three contestants missed it. Tomb of the Unknown Soldier 1. How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the Tomb and why? He takes 21 steps — symbolizing the 21-gun salute, the highest military and foreign tribute. 2. How long does he pause before turning to walk back and why? He waits 21 seconds, again in honor of the same tradition. 3. Why are his gloves damp? They are lightly moistened to ensure he never loses his grip on his rifle. 4. Does he keep his rifle on the same shoulder, and if not, why? He always carries it on the shoulder farthest from the Tomb. After each crossing, he performs an about-face and moves it to the outside shoulder. 5. How often are the guards changed? Every 30 minutes, 24/7, 365 days a year. 6. What are the physical requirements for a Tomb Guard? Applicants must be between 5'10" and 6'2" and have a waist no larger than 30". Other expectations of the Guard: They devote two years to the Tomb, live in the barracks beneath it, and must refrain from drinking alcohol on or off duty for the rest of their lives. They can never swear in public or dishonor the uniform or the Tomb. After two years, they earn a wreath pin signifying their service — fewer than 400 are currently worn. If they violate the code, they must relinquish the pin. Their shoes have thick soles to protect against extreme temperatures and metal heel plates that create the crisp click when they halt. Uniforms must have zero wrinkles or lint and are inspected in a full-length mirror. For the first six months, guards do not speak to anyone and do not watch television. Their off-duty time is spent studying the 175 notable individuals buried at Arlington National Cemetery, memorizing who they are and where they rest. Among them: President Taft, Joe E. Lewis, and Audie Murphy, the most decorated WWII soldier. Every guard spends five hours daily preparing their uniform. ETERNAL REST GRANT THEM, O LORD, AND LET PERPETUAL LIGHT SHINE UPON THEM. When Hurricane Isabel approached Washington, D.C. in 2003, Congress shut down for two days. The guards were offered permission to suspend duty due to danger. They replied: “No way, Sir!” Drenched and marching through the storm, they insisted that guarding the Tomb is the highest honor, not just a task. The Tomb has been continuously guarded — day and night — since 1930. God Bless and Keep Them I don’t often encourage sharing posts, but I would be honored if this one reached as many people as possible. We should always feel proud of the men and women who serve, wherever they are stationed. Duty – Honor – Country IN GOD WE TRUST — with Herbert F Wieland.

On the morning of October 23, 1983, a suicide bombing carried out by Iran-backed Hezbollah destroyed the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut, killing 299 people. The casualties included 241 U.S. Marines and Sailors, representing the Marine Corps' highest single-day loss of life since the Battle of Iwo Jima. WE NEVER FORGET! 🇺🇸

Dwight Eisenhower was born 136 years ago today, October 14, 1890, in Denison, Texas. He grew up in Abilene, Kansas, in a family so poor the boys took turns wearing hand-me-downs. His path to command was anything but certain. He graduated West Point in 1915 and spent World War I stateside training tank crews at Gettysburg, never getting overseas. For years afterward he worried that missing combat had ended his career. At the start of 1941 he was a lieutenant colonel. By December 1944 he wore five stars. In between, he was handed the largest amphibious invasion in history. D-Day was supposed to be June 5. Storms forced a delay. In the early hours of that morning, his chief meteorologist told him there might be a short break in the weather. If they waited longer, the tides and moonlight wouldn't line up again for weeks. Eisenhower gave the order to go. That evening he went to see the men of the 101st Airborne before they boarded their planes. His air commander had warned him the paratroopers could take catastrophic losses. He walked among them, talking with them about home, and stayed to watch the aircraft take off. At some point that day he also wrote a note, to be released if the invasion failed: "Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based upon the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone." Look closely at the original and you'll see he first wrote that the troops "have been withdrawn." He crossed it out and changed it to "I have withdrawn the troops." He wouldn't even let the grammar take the blame for him. He was so exhausted he dated it July 5. He tucked it in his wallet and forgot about it. Weeks later he pulled it out and was about to throw it away. His aide, Harry Butcher, asked to keep it. That's the only reason it survives today, now held at the Eisenhower Library back in Abilene. The man who commanded the liberation of Western Europe had already written his own resignation from history, in case he needed it. And he made sure every word of failure pointed back at himself. Happy birthday, Ike.

600 Gone in an Afternoon. Six hundred....one afternoon... Eighty three years ago today, the Eighth Air Force faced its darkest hour, and the brutal reality of the air war set in. On October 14, 1943, 291 American B17 bombers flew deep into Germany to strike the ball bearing factories in Schweinfurt. The goal was to paralyze the Nazi war machine. Instead, the day became a brutal tragedy known forever as Black Thursday. Over 700 German fighters tore into the American formations. Sixty bombers were shot down, dozens more crash landed back in England, and over 600 airmen vanished in a single afternoon. The disaster forced the Allies to halt deep daylight bombing until long-range P-51 Mustangs could be deployed to protect them. "We went over without fighter escort initially," legendary pilot John "Lucky" Luckadoo later recalled. "We performed strategic bombing missions daily, which the British objected to because they thought it was suicidal, and they were right, it was." While Luckadoo did not fly this specific October 14 mission, he flew the raid on Bremen just days earlier, where his squadron lost 12 out of 18 aircraft in an instant. He went on to complete a full 25-mission combat tour when the statistical chances of making it were practically zero. As Luckadoo described, the sheer terror of combat brought its own physiological shock: "We suddenly found ourselves sweating like a whore in church." The perspiration was so profuse that ice would block the airflow in their oxygen masks, forcing pilots to fly with one hand while using the other to break off the ice crystals. "The trauma, the horror, the chaos, the impact on your psyche could be so pronounced that you would turn white headed in the course of one mission," Luckadoo noted. "The bottom line is it doesn't matter how skilled you are or how well you perform your function, but that you are just extremely, incredibly lucky to survive." Until his passing in late 2025 at the age of 103, Lucky dedicated his life to ensuring these memories were not lost to time. Eighty three years later, the courage of those young men remains IMPOSSIBLE to fully comprehend. [Photo of me with Lucky in May 2021.]