Our freedoms and security, fought and died for by Canadians and their allies, are under attack. The biggest threats to our freedom are too much government, the eco-lobby, and censors posing as human rights commissions. Our biggest security threat is Islam.
Don Cherry talks to Brian Lilley about his new book, Straight Up And Personal. I've long considered Cherry to be one of this country's truest and proudest patriots. In this clip he recalls his family's long military history serving Canada.
This video is the result of an effort by Scott Truitt to find a method that any one of us can use to thank the men and women we encounter who are serving their country, without any potential for doubt or awkwardness. Please pass along this message any way you can.
Update Dec 2009:
I was misled by the original author of the email I wrote about in this post, last March 2009. He/she was lying about the subject of the video. My original post from March begins after the asterisk line below.
Sadly, the video I received doesn't show Canadian snipers in Afghanistan. I say sadly because as a Canadian patriot I thought it was great to actually see our heroes in action. Unfortunately, it's just freelance wildlife exterminators using elephant guns on small game so they can watch the guts fly through the air.
If you haven't just skipped to the video yet, I'd ask you to appreciate my original comments from last March (they appear before and after the clip) in appreciation of Canada's military men and women. I feel fortunate to able to use a blog to express my support of Canada's military and all our allies.
Merry Christmas to all.
cousinarlo
Original Post follows this line
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I received the video below in an email today. It startled me, amazed me, and made me feel proud to be Canadian. Proud of all of the brave men and women in our military, and proud of the skill of our sniper teams.
Following is the text of the email to which it was attached. Please read it before watching. When it says "Pay close attention to the beginning", it means have your sound and picture adjusted and ready BEFORE you press play!
God bless our soldiers. They defend our freedom with their lives.
cousinarlo
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email text:
"Read This Before Watching Video!
Not for people with weak stomachs!!!
Very sobering footage. I'm glad the Canadians are on our side."
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""Canadian Sniper wiping out Taliban Snipers in Afghanistan: they never saw it coming.
These video shots are not made through the shooter's telescopic sight. They are made looking through the spotter's scope. The spotter lies right next to the sniper and helps the sniper to find and home in on the target.
The sniper is using a 50 calibre rifle. A 50 cal. round is about 7-8 inches long and the casing is about an inch in diameter. The bullet itself is one-half inch in diameter and roughly one and one-half inches long.
Pay close attention to the beginning of the video. A Taliban sniper is laying on top of the peak in front of you... when you hear the shot fired....watch what happens. The sniper is also about a half mile away or more.
A Canadian sniper in Afghanistan has been confirmed as hitting an enemy soldier at a range of 2,310 meters (7565 ft/1.43 miles), the longest recorded and confirmed sniper shot in history. The previous record of 2,250 meters (7369 ft/1.4 miles) was set by US Marine sniper Carlos Hathcock in Vietnam in 1967. The Canadian sniper was at an altitude of 8,500 feet and the target, across a valley, was at 9,000 feet. Canadian sniper units often operated in support of US infantry units, which were grateful for their help. The record lasted only one day, until a second Canadian sniper hit an enemy soldier at 2,400 meters (7860 feet/1.48 miles).
The Canadian snipers fire special 50-calibre McMillan tactical rifles, which are bolt-action weapons with five-round magazines. The Canadian snipers were the only Canadian troops operating without helmets or flak jackets as they had too much other equipment to carry. Each three-man team has one sniper rifle, three standard rifles, Canadian (C7s), one of them with a 203mm grenade launcher.""
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After being rejected by YouTube, I was able to find a home for the video right here at Blogger.
Here is an article about five Canadian snipers from the PPCLI working with American forces in Afghanistan in 2002. They were so effective they were nominated and awarded Bronze Stars by the US Army. Sadly, (the day before the award ceremony!), some small minded Canadian military official halted the Americans' honourable gesture. This stunt did a fine job of embarrassing ALL Canadians.
The Canadian brass was too petty and envious to deal with the reality of having another country show them and the world how good Canadian soldiers really are.
UPDATE Feb 19, 2010:
This post was inspired by the story of Canadian snipers performing heroic acts in the defense of freedom. Here's an interview with Rob Furlong, the Canadian sniper who set a world record with a kill shot of 2,430 m while serving with the Marines in Afghanistan (Operation Anaconda 2002).
