True Idiots

This song is dedicated to Jed and Heather, as it is "their song"! Thanks for sharing it with the rest of us Heather!

TRUE IDIOTS

I created this page after reading the following article posted on the homepage of the fiancée of this young hero. I have "x'd" out the name of the so called "church" that organized this protest, and any mention of the family members of its founder, or any other member of this CULT. I have also changed any mention of the word "church" to CULT, as that is exactly what they are!!! They will get no form of recognition from this site!

Funeral marred by protesters

A Topeka CULT known for picketing the funerals of people who died of AIDS has started picketing soldiers' funerals.

BY BRENT D. WISTROM

The Wichita Eagle

NEWKIRK, Okla. - Flags flew at half-staff Saturday for miles around this small community, honoring a small guy with a big heart who was killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq.

But at the corner of the church where nearly half the town gathered to say goodbye to Army Spc. Jared "Jed" D. Hartley, an American flag was hanging upside-down from neon cardboard signs.

The signs said things like "America is Doomed," "God Hates Fags" and "Thank God for IEDs."

Ten people from XXXXXXXX XXXXXXX CULT in Topeka, which is protesting at several American soldiers' funerals, held the messages above their heads as mourning friends and family filed into the stone church at Seventh and Walnut.

Tension hung in the air as Kevin Roe, a tall firefighter and teacher with a strong build, confronted the group.

How can you do this, he asked.

They gave no response.

Newkirk Police Chief John Hobbs put his arm across Roe's big chest, holding him back.

"You're not right," Roe said.

Hobbs stood between the picketers and Roe. One of the protesters had an American flag hanging out of her pants and onto the sidewalk.

"She's stepping on my flag though, John," Roe said.

The chief restrained him.

"Let's not do this," Hobbs said. "Do it for the family."

"It was insulting," Roe said later. "I have three children in the military, and it was insulting.

"They were hoping to get beat up, which is a pretty sad way to live their lives," he said.

Some military officials believe Roe may be right.

After XXXXXXXX XXXXXXX announced it would protest at funerals of American soldiers killed overseas, officials issued an internal advisory to members of the military urging them to ignore the protesters.

"They will employ written and verbal inflammatory language against the deceased person, their family and military personnel to elicit desired responses," the message reads. "This group will then file a civil action in an effort to reach a settlement in order to fund future activities."

Capt. Brus Vidal of McConnell Air Force Base said he had never seen a warning like it.

"The bottom line is let the civilian authorities do their job," Vidal said. "We obviously don't have any ownership where these funerals are at."

Military color guard members, volunteer Kay County sheriff's officers and Newkirk police officers made sure the Hartley family didn't see the protesters.

They allowed the protest an hour before the funeral. Then, after an officer radioed that the protesters were out of the county, the family came to the church.

One XXXXXXXX XXXXXXX member who wasn't present at the protest was XXXXXX XXXXXX.

The high-ranking Kansas Department of Corrections official has drawn attention recently for her involvement with the CULT's protests.

But her religious life isn't impacting her professionalism, Gov. Kathleen Sebelius' office said in a statement Friday.

"Whether or not we agree with an employee's personal choices, we cannot punish them for their personal behavior or political beliefs exercised outside the workplace if those actions do not impact workplace activity," the statement said. "Our understanding in this particular situation is that there have been no workplace interruptions or incidents, therefore there is no action to be taken."

XXXXXXXX XXXXXXX CULT members began protesting at soldiers' funerals in June, claiming that God is killing the soldiers with improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, in retaliation for a plastic bomb set off in front of XXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXX in 1995, XXXXXXXXXXXX said.

"This country bombed XXXXXXXX CULT with an IED," she said in a telephone interview. "There's no coincidence that these people are dying in massive numbers with those IEDs."

A flier announcing various funeral protests says:

"They turned America
Over to fags;
They're coming home
In body bags."

"What this nation needs to understand is that the lord their God will not put up with all this... fornication, adultery and homosexuality," XXXXXXXXXXXX said.

"We're helping you connect the dots when we go to these funerals," she said.

Why Hartley's?

"He's a microcosm," she said. "He's the next guy that came up. We're not going to miss any of them unless we just can't get there."

At Hartley's burial, the 22-year-old who earned the nickname the "Mighty Mosquito" on the basketball court was more than a microcosm.

Hundreds lined up to comfort Hartley's parents, fiancée and brother.

Six uniformed men carefully folded an American flag.

Twenty-one gun shots rang across the Oklahoma fields.

Well there you have it. Untrue words from true idiots. So far on this website I have tried to keep my personal opinions on the politics and religious aspects of this war to myself. So let me apologize now for allowing my anger to get the best of me, and feeling the need to speak out on this one. I will be the first to admit that had I seen that protest, or any of this CULT's protests, I would be guilty of funding one of their up-coming events. Mr. Roe, you have my utmost respect for being able to maintain your self control under these circumstances. I consider myself a pretty "easy-going" guy, and it takes a lot to really get to me, but this article managed to do just that. So on behalf of myself, I personally apologize to the family, fiancée, and friends of this hero for the actions of this CULT. I also extend this apology to any other family that has had to see the repulsive actions of this CULT at the loss of one of our heroes.

Its not often that I find myself at a loss for words, but most of the words I would like to say right now would take away from the true meaning of this site, so I won't stoop to the level of this CULT. If I remember correctly from my Bible training, it said to "hate the sin, not the sinner".......along with "love thy neighbor as thyself," and "judge not, lest you be judged"! Did this CULT miss these parts somewhere along the way in their interpretation of the Bible? And the title of this CULT's website says that God Hates certain groups of people. I have never in my life read, or heard a man of God say that God hates anyone!!! I'm pretty sure that if God wanted idiots to speak for him, he would have spelled it out for you in stone somewhere near a burning bush atop a beautiful mountain, which are non-existent in Kansas! And I'm more than sure that this hasn't happened in the presence of anyone involved in this CULT!!! I'm thinking that more than likely, the founder of this CULT got picked up by a tornado in Kansas, and suffered a severe bump on his head, of which he has never fully recovered. And after corresponding with one of the leaders of this CULT via email, there is no doubt in my mind that they really are a CULT, and completely out of touch with reality and have no business associating themselves with a religion of any kind. If you happen to look up this CULT, you will find that they are in no way endorsed by any organized branch of any religion anywhere!!! Again proving that they are no more than a CULT. I volunteer to buy the kool-aid when this CULT'S leader decides its time for them to leave this world and board the awaiting spaceships that will ferry them to heaven. Anyway, we have wasted enough time on the idiots, now lets move on to the true heroes!!!

By Sgt. Kevin Bromley
3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division PAO

TAJI, Iraq — The Chapel was full of soldiers; yet still and silent. In a room full of people, Spc. Jared D. Hartley's fellow soldiers were alone with their thoughts.

They gathered together in the Warrior Chapel at Camp Taji to bid farewell to a young man, a friend, a hero, a brother.

Hartley was assigned to the 125th Forward Support Bn.'s Personal Security Detachment and helped provide security to multitudes of soldiers traveling the roads in Iraq. He was killed while performing these duties July 15, 2005 north of Baghdad.

"Hartley volunteered for our Personal Security Detachment ... his actions quickly set him apart as one of the very best soldiers in the Battalion," said Maj. Shannon Pool, executive officer of the 125th Forward Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division.

His dedication and expertise as a machine gunner were known and respected throughout his unit.

"I remember being amazed by his proficiency while watching him work at a range here in Iraq and at our home station train up," said Pool.

Hartley was a volunteer in every sense, he was always willing to pitch in and do his part regardless of the task.

"I've always known him as an energetic soldier who was willing to help anyone out, whether they were a private or a colonel," said Capt. Cheryl Masisak commander of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 125th FSB. "I admired and respected him for his energy and commitment to others and especially for his devotion to the unit."

Sgt. 1st Class Jason L. Scott, Hartley's former 1st Sgt., indicated that Hartley's most memorable traits were his unrelenting energy and ability to make things out of nothing.

"When he first came to the unit, you could tell he was going to be a good addition to the company," said Scott. "He was a master of 'Jerry-Rigging' ... you could count on him to accomplish any task no matter how large or small," said Scott.

Hartley, a trained mechanic was one of the best in his unit.

"He could fix anything correctly and quickly even if just to rig it to serve a purpose just long enough to accomplish a mission," said Staff Sgt. Dustin Waggoner, Hartley's team chief.

Hartley will be remembered by his fellow soldiers as more than a co-worker, he will be remembered as a friend.

Waggoner stated emphatically that "Spc. Hartley was a fun guy to be around, he had no enemies. He often joked around and kept everyone going during difficult missions."

"As a person, I have never known anyone to have more friends," said Pool.

Hartley excelled as a soldier, he kept going during hard times and pushed forward regardless of difficulty.

"He never backed down from a job or mission, he was always willing to do more," said Pool.

The loss of Hartley will leave a hole that may never be filled in the day to day operations of the 125th FSB.

"The loss of a soldier is never easy," said Col. David Bishop commander of 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division. "Hartley represented the very best that America has to offer and he died a hero in the service of his country. He gave his life to better the lives of others and there is no greater gift."

Hartley will be sorely missed by his fellow soldiers and friends in 3rd Brigade.

"We love you, we miss you, and we will never forget you," said Waggoner.

Spc. Hartley is survived by his mother, father, brother, and fiancée.

Hartley's awards include the Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart, Army Commendation Medal, the Army Achievement Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, the Iraqi Campaign Medal, the Global War or Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, The Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Combat Action Badge, Meritorious Service Medal, Battalion Belt buckle (for exceptional performance as a machine gunner for the PSD), Army Achievement Medal (his second one, for work in developing an entire host of modifications to the platoon's HMMWVs), and the Valorous Unit Award .

Col. David Bishop commander of 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division renders a final salute to Spec. Jared D. Hartley. Soldiers of 125th Forward Support Battalion, 3rd Brigade, 1st Armored Division gave their final respects at memorial services held on Camp Taji, Iraq, July 21. Hartley a native of Newkirk, Okla., was killed while conducting route security operations north of Baghdad. (Photo by Sgt. Kevin Bromley, C Team, 100th MPAD)

While we mourn the loss of another one of our heroes, "The Mighty Mosquito", we find comfort in the fact that he has changed in his "mosquito wings" for a larger pair........his ANGEL'S WINGS!!!

I'm sorry that I can't make a seperate page honoring each of our fallen heroes, but I do hope that any of you that have made your own personal tributes to one of our heroes will send it to me so I can add it to the next page of this site. It doesn't matter whether they are serving today, or have given the ultimate sacrifice.

If you would like to take part in shielding the families of our fallen heroes from groups like the one mentioned above, and be there to honor and pay tribute to one of our heroes, and their families, click on the banner below. Lets all do our part!