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A BEAUTIFUL PATRIOT'S POEM

He was getting old and paunchy
And his hair was falling fast,
And he sat around the Legion,
Telling stories of the past.

Of a war that he once fought in
And the deeds that he had done,
In his exploits with his buddies;
They were heroes, every one.

And 'tho sometimes to his neighbors
His tales became a joke,
All his buddies listened quietly
For they knew whereof he spoke.
But we'll hear his tales no longer,
For ol' Joe has passed away,
And the world's a little poorer
For a Veteran died today.

He won't be mourned by many,
Just his children and his wife.
For he lived an ordinary,
Very quiet sort of life.

He held a job and raised a family,
Going quietly on his way;
And the world won't note his passing,
'Tho a Veteran died today.

When politicians leave this earth,
Their bodies lie in state,
While thousands note their passing,
And proclaim that they were great.

Papers tell of their life stories
From the time that they were young,
But the passing of a Veteran
Goes unnoticed and unsung.

Is the greatest contribution
To the welfare of our land,
Some jerk who breaks his promise
And cons his fellow man?

Or the ordinary fellow
Who, in times of war and strife,
Goes off to serve his country
And offers up his life?
The politician's stipend
And the style in which he lives,
Are often disproportionate,
To the service that he gives.

While the ordinary Veteran,
Who offered up his all,
Is paid off with a medal
And perhaps a pension, small.

It is not the politicians
With their compromise and ploys,
Who won for us the freedom
That our country now enjoys.

Should you find yourself in danger,
With your enemies at hand,
Would you really want some cop-out,
With his ever-waffling stand?

Or would you want a Veteran
His home, his country, his kin,
Just a common Veteran,
Who would fight until the end?

He was just a common Veteran,
And his ranks are growing thin,
But his presence should remind us
We may need his likes again.

For when countries are in conflict,
We find the Veteran's part,
Is to clean up all the troubles
That the politicians start.

If we cannot do him honor
While he's here to hear the praise,
Then at least let's give him homage
At the ending of his days.

Perhaps just a simple headline
In the paper, that might say:

"OUR COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING,
A VETERAN DIED TODAY."

Submitted by Wayne Rich

---Mud

20 years ago today in 2002, infamous Finnish sniper Simo Häyhä peacefully passes away.

Known as “The White Death,” Simo was a Finnish sniper during the Winter War of 1939-40 against a communist invasion and is credited with 505 confirmed kills made with an unscoped bolt-action rifle or submachine gun. Born in 1905 Häyhä was a farmer, hunter, sports shooter, and militia member living in Southern Finland near the Russian border. When the war began, the Soviet Union immediately massed its forces hoping to overwhelm the Finnish line and end the war quickly; they had overwhelming numbers as well as massive air, artillery, and tank superiority but lacked experienced leadership due to Stalin’s recent purges of the Officer Corps.

This along with their lack of winter camouflage enabled the Finns to effectively outmaneuver the Soviets throughout the winter of 1939-40, encircling the Red Army units and harassing their supply lines. While defending their primary defensive line called the “Kolaa Front,” the Finns engaged in what they called “motti sieges,” allowing the Soviets to pass their concealed positions and attacking from behind.

Häyhä was not formally trained in optics and preferred to shoot with iron sights. He used a Finnish Sako M28/30 bolt-action rifle chambered in 7.62x54R as well as a Suomi 9mm submachine gun, occasionally moving as close as several meters to his targets. In addition to wearing all-white winter camouflage, he concealed his position by packing snow around his rifle, and put snow in his mouth to conceal his breath. On March 6th 1940 while on patrol in a swamp, Häyhä’s unit attacked a Soviet position at close range. Häyhä was hit in the jaw by an explosive rifle round which immediately knocked him unconscious; according to one source he was left under a pile of bodies until being later discovered and brought by towed sled to a field hospital. He remained unconscious for a week until waking up on March 13th, the same day that the Soviets and Finns declared armistice.

Häyhä’s injury was severe and required 26 surgeries to repair. After the war he moved back to Southern Finland, although the territory he originally grew up on was lost to the Soviets under the terms of the peace treaty. Häyhä spent the rest of his life as a hunter and dog breeder and passed away in 2002 at the age of 96.

When asked about the war he said: “War is not a pleasant experience, but who else would protect this land unless we are willing to do it ourselves?”

[Online References]

(http://nordic.businessinsider.com/the-incredible-life-of-simo-hayha-the-worlds-deadliest-sniper-who-killed-hundreds-during-the-winter-war-2017-3/ )

(https://www.britannica.com/event/Russo-Finnish-War )

(www.simohayha.fi )

[Book References]
1. “The White Sniper: Simo Häyhä” by Tapio Saarelainen, 2016.
2. “The Winter War: The Russo–Finnish War of 1939–40” by William R. Trotter, 2002

Author: Y T

Vietnam Veteran flag, back for a limited time. See it here: http://clickaleys.com/vietnam-veteran-memorial-flag