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AMAZIAN OF THE WEEK! Iraq War Veteran And Marathoner Mervin Roxas
Name: Mervin Roxas
Age: 27
Hails from: The Philippines and Orange County, CA
Occupation: Ex-Marine, Purple Heart recipient, student
LA Times writer Steve Lopez specializes in hard-luck stories–it was a series of Lopez’s columns that inspired The Soloist–and his recent profile of ex-Marine Mervin Roxas is no different in that regard. Only this hard-luck story is one in which you don’t just have to be a bystander.
Roxas, pronounced “Rojas,” was born in the Philippines but immigrated to California with his family at age 13. After the September 11th attacks, he enlisted in the Marines and served two tours in Iraq before a Humvee that he was riding in near the Syrian border was blown up by an IED, killing three of his fellow Marines and costing Roxas his entire left arm and part of his shoulder. In the six years since he suffered this devastating injury at age 21, Roxas has been rebuilding his life. On Sunday, he ran the LA Marathon in under 6 hours to raise money for U.S. VETS, an organization that takes care of homeless veterans (and incidentally, the same charity Shia LaBeouf ran for).
And that’s where you come in. Even though Roxas has completed the marathon, you can still donate to his cause. Click here to help the more than 130,000 homeless veterans in America.
[LA Times: An ex-marine can run for us]
Filed under: Charities, Filipino-Americans, Homeless Veterans, Iraq War Veterans, LA Marathon, Marathoners, Marathons, Marines, mervin roxas, Purple Heart Recipients, Steve Lopez, The Soloist, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Marines, US VETS, Veterans, vets
Number-Crunching On Veterans Day
President Obama and Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki at a Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery (Getty Images)
911
The number of U.S. soldiers who have died in the war in Afghanistan.
2,266
The number of veterans under the age of 65 who died in 2008 because they were uninsured.
4,365
The number of U.S. soldiers who have died in the Iraq war.
4,434
The number of U.S. soldiers wounded in action in the war in Afghanistan.
Continue reading Number-Crunching On Veterans Day
Filed under: Afghanistan War, Department of Veterans Affairs, General Eric Shinseki, Iraq War Veterans, Military Veterans, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, The Iraq War, US Armed Forces, VA, Veterans Day, Veterans Disability, War Casualties
AMAZIAN OF THE WEEK! US Army Staff Sgt. Sandra Lee
Last week marked the first annual Military Rape Awareness Week, sponsored by Veterans For Peace, a non-profit and officially-recognized United Nations NGO comprised of military veterans seeking alternatives to war.
Military Rape Awareness Week was conceived as a response to a recent Veterans Administrative Study funded by the US Army Medical Corps that found 1 in 3 women in the military have been raped.
US Army Reserves Staff Sgt. Sandra Lee, who was raped twice while serving in Iraq, is one of those women. She spoke at the week’s kickoff event, at the Times Square Recruiting Station in NYC:
1 in 3 servicewomen raped in the military.
Wow.
And we’re worried about gays in the military because why?
Thanks, @erwinism!
Filed under: Amazians, Gays in the Military, Iraq War Veterans, Military Rape Awareness Week, Rape in the Military, Rape Victims, Sandra Lee, Scary Studies, U.S. Army, US Military, Veterans, Veterans' Affairs
Pick Tammy Duckworth, Mr. President-Elect!
Obama and Army Major Tammy Duckworth on their way to place a wreath at a Chicago veterans memorial, Veterans Day 2008There’s an online petition and grassroots campaign underway to convince Obama to appoint Iraq War veteran, Army Major Tammy Duckworth, his Secretary of Veterans’ Affairs. You may remember Duckworth from the DNC, where she identified herself as Asian-American (she is half-Thai from her mother’s side), a Daughter of the American Revolution, the daughter of an immigrant, a female helicopter pilot, a veteran, and a “wounded warrior.” The Illinois National Guard member–who still serves on weekends–lost both her legs and some of her right arm after the Black Hawk she was co-piloting was shot down in Iraq in 2004. You cannot read her story without tearing up and thinking that your life struggles are totally inane by comparison. She’s the perfect person for the job.
Filed under: Barack Obama, Daughters of the American Revolution, Half-Thai, Illinois National Guard, Inspirasians, Iraq War Veterans, Secretary of Veterans' Affairs, Tammy Duckworth, Veterans Day
BABEWATCH: Ashwin Madia
Name: Ashwin “Ash” Madia
Age: 30
Occupation: Congressional candidate & Iraq War veteran
Hails from: Minnesota
Why He’s a Babe: What’s really hot in Minnesota right now? Ashwin Madia, that’s what. The former Marine Corps Captain is currently running for Congress in the 3rd District of Minnesota. Born in Boston to immigrant parents from Mumbai, Ash grew up in the Land of 10,000 Lakes before going to NYU Law School and serving in Iraq. And you know we love a man in uniform. We also love that he’s a former Republican who’s realized the error of his ways. And the fact that when he talks about patriotism, he gets all Clint Eastwood-squinty, like he’s going to kick your ass. Also, Ash hearts the gays (and LGBT rights), and so do we! So, yeah, basically he’s our dream boyfriend. Er, we mean, candidate.
Filed under: Ash Madia, Ashwin Madia, Brown Minnesotans, Congressional Candidates, Democrats, Gay Rights, Indian-Americans, Iraq War Veterans, LGBT, Minnesota, Semper Fi, U.S. Marines
