Chicopee soldier killed by explosive in Baghdad

[unhappycamper]

Chicopee soldier killed by explosive in Baghdad
By The Associated Press, By The Associated Press | June 29, 2007


A soldier from Chicopee, Mass., was killed by an explosive in Iraq.

Staff Sgt. Daniel A. Newsome died Wednesday of wounds suffered in a blast from an improvised explosive device in Baghdad, the Department of Defense said Thursday night.

Newsome, 27, was assigned at Fort Hood in Texas to the 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division.

Newsome formerly served in Kosovo, according to according to The Republican newspaper of Springfield. He graduated from Chicopee Comprehensive High School in 1998. His mother lives in Chicopee and his father in Springfield.

[Botany]

1. Blessings and prayers for his spirit, family, and friends

Staff Sgt. Daniel A. Newsome :patriot:

:cry:

One more family ripped apart and one more poor soul who died for a lie.

[TriSec]

2. Fallen Hero?

Ah, I saw this on the teevee this morning. (WCVB, Boston)

Shiba Russell referred to the soldier as a "fallen hero", as they often do.

Anyone else irritated by this term? I find the media uses it to excess. The firefighters that died in SC recently were also referred to as "fallen heroes". Was one group of people just doing their job more heroic than the other?

Call him what he was, a soldier. That's still honorable individually, even if their mission is not.


Add another name to the list. When will the madness end?

[Breeze54]

3. Hero: willingness to sacrifice the self for the greater good

From the Greek in mythology and folklore, a hero (male) or heroine (female) usually fulfills
the definitions of what is considered good and noble in the originating culture. Typically the
willingness to sacrifice the self for the greater good is seen as the most important defining
characteristic of an hero. However, in literature, particularly in tragedy, the hero may also
have serious flaws which lead to their downfall, e.g. Hamlet. Such heroes are often called
tragic heroes.

http://yourinfopal.com/pages/hero.htm

Yes, they are heroes and I have no problem with the use of that term.
They gave their life, whether you agree with the war or not, they deserve
respect when they pass. What harm does that terminology cause you? :shrug:

Soldiers take orders, they don't make policy.

[TriSec]

4. Media dilution, I guess.

It's not so much the use of the term per se, it's the fact that everyone and everything seems to be a "fallen hero" these days. Save it for the real ones...yes, like the firefighters and the soldiers.

Bah, maybe it's just me, I'm a grumpy old cynic.

[Breeze54]

5. There's been a lot of death and destruction since 2001...

I think a lot of people are weary of it! I know I am!

We've had a lot of death, in the news, since that fateful day.

We've lost many firefighters, police and soldiers.

It's all very tragic.

Are you going to Maine on Sunday for the march to end the war?