The Death of Ed Freeman
Jul 6th, 2009 | By Linda Brady Traynham | Category: Featured, Morning Whiskey
We’re always in a patriotic mood here in the bar, and I have been asked to pass on an account of how Ed Freeman earned his Medal of Honor, our nation’s highest award for valor. Most MOH are awarded posthumously, but Ed lived another forty-four years after earning his, and earn it he did. You will find the inspiring saga after my signature.
“Into the valley of death rode the 600.” Ed Freeman flew into the La Drang Valley of death fourteen times in a row to evacuate wounded under enemy fire so intense that the high brass had written the beleaguered outpost off and ordered the Medivac ‘copters to stand down. It wasn’t Ed’s job to go in but he perceived it to be his duty, and he deserves a shot raised in his memory. Here’s to you, Ed; you were a true hero and credit to your country.
That couldn’t happen under modern rules of engagement. The kids are scarcely allowed to shoot back, and in all probability Ed would be reprimanded, charged with disobeying an order he hadn’t been given, and punished for endangering equipment.
It was said long ago that when respect for the old virtues declines, so does the society. So long as the Romans practiced gravitas, fidelitas, pietas, civilitas, and constanzia and young men served in the Legions out of patriotism, not as a necessary ticket punch to higher political rank, Rome grew and thrived. When position became all and politics came to count more than character the barbarians took the spoils.
Ed Freeman was most likely a Warrant Officer, but my point is that even junior officers from 1965 have long since retired and today’s political climate is far different. Our young troops are still capable of being valiant, and they are still learning survival skills passed on since the days of Centurions, but years of political correctness and other Liberal notions are catching up with our nation. Now we have “soldiers” who volunteered bleating, “I didn’t join up to fight! I just wanted G I Bill rights.”
Our nation is torn with scandals at all levels of government and Congress and the White House are commanded by those who hate the military. Many of them were chanting “baby killers” when Ed Freeman “with reckless disregard for his own life” flew in to rescue the wounded a few at a time. Modern military thought is more obsessed with acceptance of homosexuals and insisting that females are entitled (?) to join the infantry. Israel has to train its young women to be warriors; the NOW gang is still pursuing a non-existent equality. Sure, some females are able to keep up with bigger, stronger, fit young men, but their plumbing arrangements are not suitable for life in the field. They endanger the rest of their squads through their physical limitations. There are many activities women can fulfill very well, such as fire control, intelligence analysis, radar and sonar operations, and even flying, but we all remember the little truck driver who was captured and raped repeatedly by Iraquis and is never going to be normal emotionally again. Her behavior was the proximate cause of the capture of herself and her squad mates.
Character and actions have everything to do with success, including in our investments. We must accept our limitations, exploit our strengths, stand by our principles, and uphold our standards, both those we measure events, ideas, material things, and others humans by, and the banners we fly mentally.
The celebration of Independence Day is here and the fireworks we have been promised include North Korea lobbing a missile at Hawaii to prove they can do it and to spit in the face of our weak president. Whatever happened to “millions for defense but not one cent for tribute?” The millions turned into trillions, and the will to defend ourselves has eroded into wishy washy pleas that we all just be friends.
The news is full of the deaths of Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson, but few told us of the passing of a great American. On the 4th of July please pause to remember Ed and all that once made our country great. His character and beliefs still live in the hearts of many of us, and telling your children and grandchildren of his heroic actions will be an inspirational few minutes for them.
Again, here’s to you Ed. You earned your place in Valhalla.
Regards,
Linda Brady Traynham
July 6, 2009
UH-OH! SORRY, THE WRITE-UP ON ED FREEMAN DISAPPEARED! BASICALLY, HE FLEW HIS UNARMED CHOPPER INTO WITHERING FIRE REPEATEDLY AND RESCUED SOME 30 MEN. I FIGURE THAT AFTER THE FIRST FEW TRIPS JUST POSSIBLY CHARLEY HAD FIGURED OUT HE WAS COMING BACK, DON’T YOU? I THINK THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST HEROIC ACTIONS I EVER HEARD OF BECAUSE IT INVOLVED REPEATED ACTS OF VALOR. MANY TIMES MEN SAY AFTERWARDS, “I DIDN’T EVEN THINK; I SAW WHAT HAD TO BE DONE AND JUST DID IT.” THE RESPONSE TIME IS ALMOST INSTANTANEOUS. IN ED FREEMAN’S CASE HE MADE 14 DELIBERATE DECISIONS TO RISK HIS OWN LIFE. THAT’S REAL HEROISM.
There is an email that floats around the internet that we have received many, many times regarding the heroic actions of Maj. Ed Freeman – what an incredible story and an incredible man! In these days, when our children’s heroes consist of a little yellow sponge with square blue pants, where one can raise a “time out card” if things get too scary during military basic training, or where if a soldier isn’t having fun yet, he can just quit – what an awesome and inspiring hero Maj Freeman was and is. We’ll raise a mason jar of sweet tea in your honor, Sir!
If you’d like to read more about Maj. Freeman, take a look at these links –
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Freeman
http://www.snopes.com/politics.....reeman.asp
Thanks, Kristen! That was the one I had hoped to add. It is really inspirational. Linda
Freeman’s actions were selfless and amazing. The only quibble I have with your post is implying that news organizations covered the MJ & FF deaths instead. MJ & FF died in 2009, Freeman died in 2008.
Linda: Something you should note about your citation of Mr. Freeman and linking to media coverage of celebrity news.
I think it’s been overlooked but the real tragedy in this story is how some people have the gall to prostitute the fine story of Mr. Freeman’s heroism and his passing away to attack the media. If you look, Mr. Freeman passed away on August 2008.
In previous versions of this email, 1)it cited that Mr. Freeman died the same day as Paul Newman (09/27/08), 2) corresponded with the Chris Brown beating of girfriend Rihanna (02/25/09) and now (WOULD YOU BELIEVE) 3) that his passing was ignored by the “liberal media” because he died the same day as Michael Jackson (06/25/09)!!!!!
Shame on anyone who would prostitute Mr. Freeman because they have an issue with the media. Do your part. Stop passing those ****** emails without checking the facts!!!!
The media need to be held to a spotlight — I agree. But don’t do it at the expense of trivializing the passing of this hero.
Sorry, Michael, that was what I inferred from the article I read. However, did we hear about his death in 2008, either?
A nation NEEDS heroes. In Major (I now know) Freeman’s case, it isn’t flying into the teeth of danger when it wasn’t his job, in an unarmed wheely-floppiter. It was going back time, and time, and time again when Charlie HAD to have figured out he was coming back. Most acts of bravery (my husband was cited three times for valor, two Bronzes and a Silver star) are committed without conscious thought, which makes them no less heroic. It’s a one time thing, and the heroes will tell you abashedly that they didn’t think about it, they just acted. We honor them for that. What makes Major Freeman so very special is that with full knowledge of what he was doing and the risks he didn’t quit until the job was done. That is an act of such incredible selflessness and devotion above and beyond the call of duty that it will always give me goosebumps.
Smile…my husband, a Lieutenant then, was known throughout a fair portion of RVN as “Towel Traynham.” (I told him he would never make general with a nickname like that, and he didn’t! Generals get pet names like “Howling Mad” and “Stone Wall.”) He got that monicker as the lone foreward observer in an exceptionally nasty LZ providing cover for another a couple of clicks away. He was ALL they had to call fire, and when things got “dull,” John would pour a bucket of precious water over himself and flop down exhausted on his cot, rousing occasionally to say, “Okay, that’s ours…no problem…oh, m’gosh (or military talk for the same which ladies are not allowed to repeat!) INCOMING!!!”
He would leap up, shove his feet into his unlaced combat boots, clap a steel pot on his head, sling a towel–a WHITE towel, mind you–around his manly loins, and buckle on his side arm as he raced for the barricade. Up he would climb (you can’t adjust fire if you can’t see where the rounds are landing), bland as butter, the part we would not like shot off high-lighted, stand on the berm in plain sight, and deal with the crisis. What a nut! Nobody saw that as “heroic.” It was his job.
Heroic was running out on an open beach to rescue one of his men who had been wounded, carrying him to safety under devastating fire, for just one example.
John had SEVEN RTO’s shot out from under him and came home from an extended tour without a scratch, thank a gracious God. He went through Tet, the Ashau, and Pleiku, and if any of you knew him, have a bourbon in his memory, please. He was partial to Jack Daniels.
It took me five years to replace John, as he wanted me to do, and I wouldn’t settle for less than another warrior. John was a hell of a man, even if he was known to lean on the closed refrigerator door and ask plaintively, “Don’t we have any cheese?”
“I can’t see through steel, Dear, but if you’ll open the door we usually have seven kinds!”
He was well-known as a leader of mountain climbs, and as a minor pistol champion. A little more time and who knows what he could have done with IPSA?
Ah, Michael, thank you for bringing back good memories. We spent several years thirty clicks (about 18 miles) from a Soviet-occupied border. The mighty hero and company commander would wake me up and ask, “Where’s my hat?” I would open one eye, look at him sternly, and enquire, “Does Boris ask Natasha where his hat is?”
“Yes,” would come the sheepish reply.
“In that case, it’s on top of the refrigerator where you tossed it when you came in last night!” At about eleven. Company commanders left about five back during the “cold” war, were back by eleven lots of the time, and on good nights didn’t get called out at two a.m. to deal with drunks. We survived, we laughed…those were the days.
I miss you, John, but you would approve of my darling Charles. Thirty years in the navy and nearly twenty in Egypt, Kuwait, and Afghanistan, and he dotes on me.
I love getting comments, Michael, especially when I don’t have my facts straight, although I try my best. Thanks for writing.
Linda
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