When President Donald Trump drapes the Medal of Honor -- our nation's highest honor -- around David Bellavia on June 25, the Batavia resident will become the lone living veteran of the Iraq War to receive the honor.
Bellavia, who co-hosts a news talk show on WBEN, wasn't available for comment today.
Bellavia is already a Silver Star recipient for his single-handed battle against a nest of insurgents during the Second Battle of Fallujah.
He's also received the Bronze Star, three Army Commendation Medals, two Army Achievement Medals, and the New York State Conspicuous Service Cross.
The Batavian will cover the press conference in Buffalo next week and the award ceremony at the White House on June 25 at the invitation of Bellavia.
Photo: File photo from 2011 when Bellavia announced his first congressional campaign.
Great news
Great news
Sully the medal. It pays to
Sully the medal. It pays to kiss up to the deeply entrenched neocon warmongers and their fawning admirers. VOMIT!
Daniel Norstrand, despite
Daniel Norstrand, despite your comment, people like Bellavia will still serve you, protect you, and be prepared to lay down their life for you.
Dayne, save it for someone
Dayne, save it for someone who is ignorant of the realities of our wars. Serve me? By murdering innocents in a country we were led into a war based on pure BS? Protect me? By exponentially increasing the numbers of people who hate Americans? Lay down his life? LOL. Did you read any of the.... story cobbled into a book by balabias cohort "journalist" who accompanied balabia on his mission? It would truly be laughable if not for the fact that it was deadly. Great propaganda fodder. The military has been fighting his diligent efforts to obtain the medal he is being GIVEN. Why? Because those who had the facts at hand, and in real time, said NEGATIVE THAT!
Interestingly, our current pres. Is considering pardoning all of our war criminals which seems to answer the question; why now?
Check here:
Iraq Combat Veteran: Pardon of War Criminals Sends Disturbing Message to U.S. Military | Democracy Now!
https://www.democracynow.org/2019/6/3/iraq_combat_veteran_pardon_of_war
A local guy gets a great
A local guy gets a great honor. Instead of congratulating him, some people have to use it for political grandstanding and negativity. Somehow, I'm not surprised.
Same here Howard. I didn't
Same here Howard. I didn't say I support(ed) the war. But just like Vietnam, even an unwinnable and unjust war/conflict still has very real people caught up in the middle of it, most just trying to make it through alive and save the ones fighting next to them. I'm very proud of our local man getting this honor, all politics aside.
He and you are the
He and you are the grandstanders. I profit zero for pointing out inconvenient truths. You and he are the war profiteers. I bear the backlash from my propagandized brethren. Somehow I'm not surprised. Follow the money.... right to your mirror.
And once again howard, no
And once again howard, no refutation of facts so attack (snivel at?) the messenger.
And Dayne, ",people caught up
And Dayne, ",people caught up in the middle of it" was the whining lament of nazi's prosecuted and summarily hung at Nuremberg. Refusing to murder people in their own homes in these insane wars would, these days, result in hurt feelings. Not firing squads, not imprisonment, just a dishonorable discharge. Something that a truly Honorable man would wear with pride for having done the right thing, damn the consequences.
You should know by now,
You should know by now, Daniel, I don't support foreign intervention.
But I'm also reasonable. Where others see black and white. I see nuance. It's called being an intelligent human being.
Also, as a libertarian/conservative, I don't condemn individuals who may have chosen a different path.
And because I care more about my local community than anything else, I celebrate the accomplishments and honors of my fellow residents above all else. I consider it petty and juvenile to use the honors of others to score political points, cast aspersions, or otherwise denigrate something that is truly a great honor.
I look forward to being in the White House on June 25 to see David received the Medal of Honor regardless of how I now judge the war (which I mistakenly supported in 2003 before I rejected the neoconservative viewpoint). It's a great honor for him and I'll be honored to be there, one of the great moments of my journalistic career.
The fact that you can't celebrate a fellow Genesee County resident receiving such an honor says more about you than it does about him or any of the rest of us.
Howard,
Howard,
Well said. Also, that truly is an honor to have been invited to the White House, that's awesome that you received that invitation.
Daniel has a few issues
Daniel has a few issues
I am honored to have a fellow
I am honored to have a fellow Genessean get this honor. As a Veteran I am honored. I worked on Davids campaign for Congress, which to this day I believe he should have won. Look what we have now. I wonder if Daniel felt the same way about LBJ and his co conspirator Robert McNamara. Viiet Nam was much the same, and talk about autrocities. All to support a corrupt Government. But not the problem of the grunt. His and or her job was to follow lawful orders. That is the difference from the Nazi's.. Lawful orders. Murder and looting, and torture are not Lawful orders. If you follow unlawful orders, you are as guilty as the ones giving the orders. That is true today. Congratulations David, and I hope yourun again, we need folks like you.
Thank you for your service,
Thank you for your service, David Bellavia
No refutation of facts john
No refutation of facts john roach so... more sniveling. Howard your fawning self description of yourself as "reasonable" and "intelligent," as well as your 7 other references to yourself in #10, says a lot. A major reason these murderous interventions continue is just such vanity. And the "honor" you and the others feel by being somehow associated (mostly in your minds) with such "honor" supports, aids, and abets the very murderous "foreign interventions" you claim not to support.
The fact that your invited to the propaganda party, and your thrills at achieving such is simply more of the same fake news crap that sucks our people into these wars. Another fawning transcriber and purveyor of the illegal, unethical, unjustifiable wars our corrupted leaders wage. Wars which you can now claim as your own. There "lies" the only nuance that is pertinent to your roll.
Gee Fred, you and john joined
Gee Fred, you and john joined the batavian the very same day. Interesting. And yes, I do feel the same regarding lbj and Vietnam. A big difference between the Vietnam war and our ongoing wars is the daily portrayal of the wars in the media. It gave rise to discourse. Having to be a part of the daily killing by seeing it every night on the news, was good medicine. Medicine withheld from the people today by only allowing "embedded" propagandists in our war zones. Real journalists, real heroes, like Julian Assange, Bradley Manning, Snowden and others of their righteous order, are persecuted and prosecuted while pseudo journalists blatantly ignore their plight. Shameful.
The article doesn't say it,
The article doesn't say it, however I have to assume Mr. Bellavia risked his life to help save fellow Americans.
When a person, any person, risks their life to save a fellow human being, I believe they should be recognized in some way.
I don't know Mr. Bellavia but from what I've been told about him, I have much respect for him and I am happy to see his actions recognized.
The sad part of this story the U.S.A. put this man and all the others in the situation they found themselves in. The United States needs to stop killing people...
David, that's a pretty spot
David, that's a pretty spot on comment. I wish I had said as well myself.
Remember to tune in to the
Remember to tune in to the Bauerle & Bellavia radio show, M-F @3pm on WBEN 930am... ;>)
That's the point of
That's the point of propaganda David. The backers and advisors of balavava and his misnomer organization "Vets for freedom" are some of the world's most aggressive warmongers. bill kristol, and sheldon adelson have been facilitating balavia for years. Bet your bottom dollar this is angled at more war in the middle east. trump is being a good boy for adelson, who is the largest donor to his campaign. As I recall trump had claimed in his run up to the presidency that his campaign was self funded. In fact here he is:
Facebook Watch
https://m.facebook.com/watch/?v=10156699675010725&_rdr
Here's the reality:
From theguardian.com
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/23/sheldon-adelson-trump-s…
And here:
From jpost.com
https://www.jpost.com/US-Elections/Last-minute-Adelson-flushes-Trump-ca…