Teen Who Vanished From Myrtle Beach in ’09 was Allegedly Raped, Killed and “Eaten by the Gators”

In 2009, 17-year-old Brittanee Drexel disobeyed her parents orders, and left her home in Chili, New York, to go on a road trip with her friends to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Chad and Dawn Drexel never saw their daughter again.

In July, the FBI came forward with information regarding what investigators believe happened to the teen after she disappeared.

The New York Democrat & Chronicle reported:

“What we’ve come to discover through the course of this investigation is that Brittanee Drexel did leave the Myrtle Beach area. We believe she traveled to this area around McClellanville and we believe she was killed after that.”

Drexel was last seen on a surveillance video from the BlueWater Resort in Myrtle Beach, and another video filmed by friends in her hotel room. After that, she disappeared.

Independent Journal Review previously reported, “the last ping of her cell phone occurred 60 miles south of Myrtle Beach.”

Image Credit: Screenshot / Surveillance Video / WHAM

Now, there appears to be a conclusion to this horrifying story.

The Post and Courier has obtained a court transcript in which FBI agent Garrick Munoz reveals that earlier this year, Taquan Brown, an inmate serving 25 years for voluntary manslaughter, “confessed” to officials that he’d seen Drexel in a “stash house” after her disappearance.

When Brown went to the stash house to give money to a man named Shaun Taylor, he allegedly saw Taylor’s son, Timothy Da’Shaun, as well as several others, “sexually abusing Brittanee Drexel.”

Brown claims that when he and Taylor were in the backyard, Drexel tried to escape the house, but was hit, and dragged back inside. He says he heard two gunshots, and assumed Drexel had been killed. Her body was “wrapped up and taken away,” according to the account in The Post and Courier.

Agent Munoz then said that “several witnesses have told us Miss Drexel’s body was placed in a pit, or gator pit, to have her body disposed of. Eaten by the gators.”

Brown’s confession is allegedly corroborated by an inmate in the Georgetown county jail.

The Post and Courier reports that according to this unidentified inmate:

“…Da’Shaun Taylor picked Drexel up in Myrtle Beach and took her to McClellanville. There he ‘showed her off, introduced her to some other friends that were there…they ended up tricking her out with some of their friends, offering her to them and getting a human trafficking situation,’ the FBI agent testified.”

When the media pressure became too hot, that’s when Drexel’s captors decided to take her life and dispose of her body.

The FBI has supposedly conducted sweeps in various alligator pits for physical evidence, and have thus far come up empty. There are over 40 such pits in the area in which officials believe Drexel was murdered.

Da’Shaun Taylor & Brittanee Drexel. Image Credit: Cannon Detention Center / Facebook

Timothy Da’Shaun Taylor’s attorney, David Aylor, claims this is a “squeeze-job” relating to another case. In 2011, Taylor was the getaway driver in a robbery, and subsequently served probation.

Aylor claims the FBI simply wants to charge Taylor with the same crime, but on a federal level, in order to force a confession out of him regarding Drexel.

Additionally, Joan Taylor, wife of Shaun Taylor and mother of Da’Shaun Taylor, claims this whole process is being used to “pin something else” on her son. She also said her husband, who refused to comment, is “fed up with it and he thinks it’s crazy.”

Regardless of the integrity of the allegations, the Drexel family is surely reeling from the heinous news regarding their daughter’s possible fate.

Neither the FBI nor prosecutors would provide additional information to The Post and Courier. Independent Journal Review reached out to the FBI, but received no response.

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Source: independent journal

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Trump Posts 2 Tweets About the Shooting Death of a NBA Star’s Cousin and Ignites a Firestorm

That old saying — “I can’t win for losing”? Donald Trump must feel that way after posting a couple of tweets about the shooting death of NBA star Dwyane Wade’s cousin in Chicago as she walked her baby in a stroller.

Then again the first tweet looked a whole lot more like a campaign slogan than an expression of condolence:

Dwyane Wade’s cousin was just shot and killed walking her baby in Chicago. Just what I have been saying. African-Americans will VOTE TRUMP!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 27, 2016

Yeah, that one didn’t go over to well in the Twittersphere:

@realDonaldTrump This is a new low even for you. You are inhuman. Utterly despicable.

— Gary Whitta (@garywhitta) August 27, 2016

@realDonaldTrump you seriously didn’t delete this opportunistic & heartless tweet?

— Dr. Michele Ross (@drmicheleross) August 27, 2016

@realDonaldTrump http://pic.twitter.com/wxhJh4W7Y2

— Perez (@ThePerezHilton) August 27, 2016

@realDonaldTrump http://pic.twitter.com/pB2wzdrk4p

— FTrumpFGOP – Russ (@RussSegner) August 28, 2016

So The Donald decided to give it another shot:

My condolences to Dwyane Wade and his family, on the loss of Nykea Aldridge. They are in my thoughts and prayers.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 27, 2016

As to be expected, that one didn’t go over too well, either:

@elysofly because his sympathy is bullshit. He posted this, was called out. Backlash caused this as afterthought. http://bit.ly/2c3z5iw

— Adam Mordecai (@advodude) August 27, 2016

@realDonaldTrump Too little too late, asshole.

— Krister Johnson (@KristerJohnson) August 27, 2016

Some people questioned whether The Donald actually wrote the second tweet himself:

This tweet contains a modicum of decency. Obviously @realDonaldTrump didn’t write this.

— Ashton (((Elijah))) (@ashtonpittman) August 27, 2016

@advodude @elysofly Also, it was too cohesive a thought for him to have written it. Undoubtedly from a #Trump campaign Clown du Jour.

— Michele Lang (@micheleylang) August 27, 2016

One of those people was Keith Olbermann (Is he still around?):

Oh look, an afterthought written by somebody else FOR @realDonaldTrump (he tweets via Android)#Asshole#Psychopath http://pic.twitter.com/UHMk1nWgJf

— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) August 27, 2016

The Donald seemed confused by the whole thing…

Apparently I thought everyone was DISGUSTED by what I said c I mispelled Dwyane’s name. SAD! @realDonaldTrump http://pic.twitter.com/N2AgNGB7cZ

— DonaId J. Trump (@realDenaldTrump) August 27, 2016

In defense of The Donald, would it really have made a difference to his detractors if he had posted the second tweet in the first place? Chances are the firestorm would’ve happened anyway. Just ask Hillary.

The post Trump Posts 2 Tweets About the Shooting Death of a NBA Star’s Cousin and Ignites a Firestorm appeared first on Independent Journal Review.

Source: independent journal

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Tim Kaine Links Trump to KKK, Doesn’t Mention Hillary’s Friendship with Fmr Klan Leader Robert Byrd

In a speech Friday at Florida A&M University, Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Kaine (D-VA) blasted Donald Trump, linking him to the KKK:

“Donald Trump has a different point of view. You’ve heard during the campaign, he’s ridiculed people with disabilities, he’s ridiculed people if they were of Mexican-American origin, he has said that anyone who is Muslim should be treated as second class, religiously…Donald Trump was a main guy behind the scurrilous — and I would say bigoted — notion that President Obama wasn’t even born in this country.

…he has supporters like David Duke connected with the Ku Klux Klan who are going around and saying Donald Trump is their candidate because Donald Trump is pushing their values. Ku Klux Klan values, David Duke values, Donald Trump values are not American values, they’re not our values.”

Kaine’s speech at the historically black college comes on the heels of Hillary Clinton’s Reno speech, in which she called out Trump for his allegedly bigoted positions.

What neither Kaine nor Clinton mention is the former Secretary of State’s relationship with the late Senator and former KKK leader Robert Byrd.

When Byrd passed away in 2010, Clinton said:

“Today our country has lost a true American original, my friend and mentor Robert C. Byrd…Senator Byrd was a man of surpassing eloquence and nobility…It is almost impossible to imagine the United States Senate without Robert Byrd. He was not just its longest serving member, he was its heart, its soul, and its historian. From my first day in the senate, I sought out his guidance…”

She also remarked about his “leadership” after 9/11:

“I will never forget his devotion and his friendship in that critical time.”

Sen. Byrd joined the KKK at the age of 24. He became a recruiter and leader in his chapter.

In the mid-1940s (the exact date is disputed), Byrd wrote a letter to Sen. Theodore Bilbo (D-MS), which stated in part:

“I shall never fight in the armed forces with a negro by my side….Rather I should die a thousand times, and see Old Glory trampled in the dirt never to rise again, than to see this beloved land of ours become degraded by race mongrels, a throwback to the blackest specimen from the wilds.”

Byrd later rose to fame by launching a 14-hour filibuster in opposition to the 1964 Civil Rights Act while he was a senator.

In 2005, Byrd apologized for his behavior:

“I know now I was wrong. Intolerance had no place in America. I apologized a thousand times…and I don’t mind apologizing over and over again. I can’t erase what happened.”

So, a former Klan leader was Hillary Clinton’s “friend and mentor,” a person to whom she looked for guidance. The former Secretary of State can beat the drum against Trump over and over again, but her relationship with Senator Byrd may make those appeals ring hollow for some.

The post Tim Kaine Links Trump to KKK, Doesn’t Mention Hillary’s Friendship with Fmr Klan Leader Robert Byrd appeared first on Independent Journal Review.

Source: independent journal

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Mom Warns Fellow Parents About the Dangers of Leaving Their Phones In the Stroller Next To Baby

The Mirror writes that Rebeca Gleeson felt terrible about what happened while she was “out walking with her children Evan, five, Kian, two, and Rose, five months, and her friend and her children and their dogs”.

But she knew it could help other parents if she shared the story. So, Gleeson took to social media in order to tell the tale of how baby Rose was hurt while in her pram, otherwise known in the U.S. as a baby stroller:

Loading Facebook Post…

Gleeson began by setting up the scene:

“Went out today and left my phone in roses pram; it slipped under her leg.
In today’s heat and I think because she pressed the button which activated the camera (leaving the screen lit) the phone has burnt her leg.
She was sat there for about 30-35 minutes, only cried for about 5 minutes at the end when my friend picked her up (I was carrying kian as he hurt himself falling ????)”

Gleeson, again noting how awful she felt about what happened, added that Rose had been seen by the doctor:

Feeling absolutely terrible.
She’s had cream and dressed at docs and has to have it checked again Friday.

She then urged parents to spread the word so others would not make the same mistake:

Feel free to share, don’t leave phones in babies prams ????

On the following day, Gleeson shared an update about Rose, noting that her leg looked much improved:

Loading Facebook Photo…

In addition to using caution when it comes to cell phones in strollers or near baby’s tender skin, parents also need to be mindful of their use of cloth covers on the stroller to protect baby from the sun. They can accidentally cause baby to overheat.

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Source: independent journal

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How a Member of the ‘Alt-Right’ Infiltrated Hillary’s Speech on Racism and Made the Internet Go Wild

They walk among us…

It was easy to miss. During Hillary Clinton’s speech on the “alt-right” Thursday, a man shouted the word “pepe” after the Democratic nominee first mentioned the movement, what she called “an emerging racist ideology.”

The shout appeared to catch Clinton’s attention:

What to make of that?

“Pepe the frog” is a green anthropomorphic cartoon frog from a 2005 comic book called “Boy’s Club.” The character became a popular internet meme, or cartoon used to express facial reactions and other thoughts on the internet.

Eventually, however, Pepe was effectively adopted by the alt-right and 4chan users (an online bulletin board where users post comments and images anonymously).

Pepe the Frog as “Smug Pepe” Image Credit: Knowyourmeme.com

Before Clinton delivered her remarks Thursday, a 4chan user posted a photo of a Pepe flag in the audience at the Reno, NV, venue where the candidate delivered her speech.

“At a hill rally in the top left corner of the balcony. Look for me!” the user wrote along with the photo. The Pepe flag helped identify him to other message board users as an alt-right ally:

Screenshot. Image Credit: wearechange.org

Shortly after the original post other users on the message board urged him to yell “Pepe” during Clinton’s speech.

Others warned him that the “Live” watermark on television and computer screens blocked him from view:

Screenshot. Image Credit: wearechange.org

Another user compared the venue interior in the original photo with the interior on the live stream to confirm he was actually in the building:

Screenshot. Image Credit: wearechange.org

Here is a side view of the venue, where the user said he stood, from Getty Photos:

Image Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty

Then a man named Sean Lewandowski began streaming the speech from the venue on Periscope, a live video sharing social media platform.

You can watch the speech from the man’s vantage point in the video below. Lewandowski shouts “pepe” near the end of the video at 21:30:

LIVE on #Periscope http://bit.ly/2bLOllR

— Dowski (@SeanLewandowski) August 25, 2016

When he took the plunge, the 4chan crowd online went wild:

Screenshot. Image Credit: wearechange.org

In an interview with Breitbart published Friday, the man was only identified as “Sean,” but Lewandowki confirmed to Independent Journal Review his last name.

He told Breitbart, whose chairman just joined Donald Trump’s campaign as CEO, that:

“Originally I had no intention of doing anything other than documenting the event on Periscope… then she started attacking a true patriot, and someone I really look up to, Alex Jones.”

Lewandowki said he was removed from the Clinton event after shouting “pepe” and said he considers himself:

“Alt-right because the conservative establishment right in this country does not represent my views, they are just as much to blame for the disaster taking place in America as the left, the alt right to me is fiscal responsibility, secure borders, enforcement of immigration laws, ending the PC culture, and promoting AMERICA FIRST (Not Sharia First).”

When asked by an Independent Journal Review reporter if he planned to pull out the Pepe flag for future events, Lewandowski replied on Twitter:

@KelseyRupp Never say never ????

— Dowski (@SeanLewandowski) August 26, 2016

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Source: independent journal

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Police Chief Calls Mother’s Brutal Murder of 10-Year-Old Child ‘Most Gruesome Act of Evil’ He’s Seen

When police responded to a disturbance at the Arroyo Villas apartment complex in Albuquerque, New Mexico, they had no idea of the impact it would have on their lives.

Not only will they never forget it, but they would go home and hold their children a little tighter, reminded of the reasons they go out every day to do what they do.

The anonymous call came early Wednesday morning. When they arrived, police found 35-year-old Michelle Martens and her 31-year-old boyfriend, Fabian Gonzales, with cuts and bruises to the face. Gonzales’s shorts were stained with blood.

This is Fabien Gonzales tonight as police took him to MDC. He is the boyfriend of Michelle Martens. http://pic.twitter.com/1FRu4JB7lL

— Chris McKee (@ChrisMcKeeTV) August 25, 2016

Initially, authorities thought the couple had been assaulted by Jessica Kelley, a 31-year-old ex-con and Gonzales’s cousin, who was staying with Marten and Gonzales temporarily.

According to the criminal complaint, Martens and Gonzales fled the apartment after Kelley assaulted them with an iron.

.@ABQPOLICE say Jessica Kelley has refused to talk to investigators at this point. She’s still at hospital. #KOAT http://pic.twitter.com/eHu34Nh0RS

— Kirsten Swanson (@KirstenKOAT) August 25, 2016

When law enforcement officials arrived to question Kelley, however, she wouldn’t let them in. In fact, in an attempt to escape, she jumped from the balcony.

But that didn’t scratch the surface of why the call to the Arroyo Villas would be one of the worst tragedies law enforcement officials had ever seen.

After Martens, Gonzales, and Kelly were detained, Martens made a chilling comment about her daughter still being inside the apartment. Police busted through the door.

With the fire alarm going off, they found the source of the smoke in the bathroom. Lying in the bathtub, wrapped in a blanket, was an unrecognizable and lifeless 10-year-old girl.

Her name was Victoria Martens.

All AM on @KOB4, the latest on the investigation of Victoria Martens’ death, & the emotional community response. http://pic.twitter.com/KkdjKYQhA2

— KOB 4 (@KOB4) August 26, 2016

KOB 4 reported on the brutal way Victoria’s life was stolen from her:

According to the police report, Martens said Gonzales and Kelley gave the victim methamphetamine “to calm her down so they could have sex with her.” Gonzales allegedly sexually assaulted the victim as Kelley covered the girl’s mouth and Martens watched.

Martens reportedly told police Gonzales then killed the victim by choking her and Kelley stabbed her in the chest. Gonzales told police he was not involved in the death, saying Kelley killed her.

After they killed her, they dismembered her body, wrapped it in a blanket, and set it ablaze in the bathtub.

Victoria was supposed to celebrate her 10th birthday later that day.

10 year old Victoria Martens. Remember her name. Remember her beautiful smile. Rest in peace sweet angel http://pic.twitter.com/7tTfeX8JP2

— jackie tony donnie (@jtd1003) August 25, 2016

Albuquerque Police Chief Gorden Eden Jr. said of the scene, via ABC News:

“This homicide is the most gruesome act of evil I have ever seen in my career. A complete disregard of human life.”

According to detectives, Martens, who has no criminal history, showed no remorse for helping to kill her own daughter.

Michelle Martens, mother, showed “absolutely no remorse,” when detectives questioned her about the killing. #KOAT http://pic.twitter.com/AWop3hsgXI

— Kirsten Swanson (@KirstenKOAT) August 25, 2016

The Associated Press reported that Gonzales was on probation for beating his girlfriend in 2015, but there was a failure to monitor him:

A New Mexico official says a man arrested in the killing of a 10-year-old Albuquerque girl was supposed to be on supervised probation from an unrelated case but wasn’t being monitored by probation officers.

New Mexico Governor Susanna Martinez, who was a prosecutor for 25 years, said Victoria’s murder is the worst case of violence she’s ever seen.

With a one million dollar bond, Martens and Gonzales are facing the following charges:

• Child abuse leading to death
• Tampering with evidence
• Kidnapping

Additionally, Gonzales and Kelley are being charged with sexually abusing a minor.

In honor of Victoria’s memory and to celebrate the birthday she missed, a shrine of sorts was set up outside of the apartment for her.

So many young girls, many of them probably never knew Victoria Martens, but they helped her celebrate her bday http://pic.twitter.com/CROE2VRTyy

— Marissa Lucero (@MarissaKRQE) August 26, 2016

So many emotions on a day #Albuquerque is grieving the loss of 10-year-old Victoria Martens http://pic.twitter.com/afc4vlujBt

— Marissa Lucero (@MarissaKRQE) August 26, 2016

Kathy Jaramillo knew Martens and Victoria. Jaramillo said of her, “She was a beautiful little girl, she always had everybody always smiling.”

As far as justice goes, it’s unclear what kind of sentences the three are facing. But the atrocity has sparked a debate about New Mexico bringing back the death penalty.

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Source: independent journal

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If Considering Moving to Canada After Election, This ‘Expert’ Suggests You Move to Caribbean Instead

Plenty of Americans have said they’ll move to Canada if Trump becomes president, but considering Canadians pay an exorbitant amount of taxes, one international financial advisor suggests a sunnier location: the Caribbean.

Nuri Katz, President at APEX Capital Partners, tells Independent Journal Review that Americans aren’t just talking about fleeing the country; they’re going a step further and renouncing their U.S. citizenship.

Described as a business where “consultants have guided affluent individuals and their families through the complexities of foreign investing, and of obtaining alternate citizenship and residency, APEX is a global company with offices in Dominica, Greece, Canada, and St. Kitts/Nevis.

While Katz, who was born in the U.S., has been living in Canada for 45 years, he says moving to the Caribbean instead of the maple country might be a better alternative:

“For Americans, the whole tax issue is a really tough thing. You can’t just pick up and move to Caribbean and not worry about taxes. As long as you’re an American citizen, you still pay U.S. taxes.

Having said that, more and more Americans are renouncing their American citizenship. A record number every year, for various reasons, do this. I think more and more are going to renounce in 2016 — and we are getting a lot more than what we used to get — interest, that is, from Americans to get citizenship elsewhere. I expect a HUGE spike in that after November because of the very strong feelings that people have about the two candidates.”

As Fortune reports, 1,058 Americans renounced their citizenship in just the final quarter of 2015 alone, which is a stark contrast to the 300 who did so in all of 2006.

Katz says the incentive for Americans to cut ties with their roots is largely financial, but moving away doesn’t solve the problem like they might think:

“Americans have a problem and that is that they’re taxed on worldwide income no matter where they live.

Even if you renounce your American citizenship, you pay a capital gains tax on your whole net worth in order to do so. So say you have house that’s worth $5 million, a company worth $10 million and gold worth $20 million — you have to pay a capital gains tax on everything that you have in order to renounce your citizenship. It’s very complicated.”

Once an American renounces his U.S. citizenship — and finishes paying the capital gains tax on everything he owns — his financial commitment to the U.S. government ends.

And after that experience, he may never want to pay taxes again in his life. If that’s the case, Katz recommends moving to somewhere in the Caribbean.

In fact, relocating to sunny Antigua means never having to pay an income tax at all. And getting a Caribbean citizenship is much easier than giving up U.S. citizenship:

“In the Caribbean it takes 3-4 months to get citizenship, not long depending on who you are and how complicated your history has been. It’s a relatively easy process.”

Image Credit: Chris Jackson/Getty Images

Katz explains that he himself hasn’t yet renounced his U.S. citizenship, despite having lived in another country for 45 years. He says his father was a refugee who came to America after a “long and difficult” struggle to get there, so for him, it’s personal:

“Emotionally, it’s difficult for me, but if you take out emotion, and focus only on the ideological part of potentially living under either Trump or Hillary, you can understand a lot of people being really upset.

I was speaking yesterday to a Russian client of ours, and he said to me, ‘It’s absolutely amazing to me — this country that has thousands of Harvard, Yale, and Columbia graduates, all they could come up with is Hillary and Trump? Out of 300+ million people, all they could come up with are these two? One has a whole history of corruption and the other one has a history of bankruptcy. Every partner, every investor who’s ever dealt with him has lost.’

I can understand that people upset with the situation and just want to get out…aside from issues of taxes and other financial issues.”

He says he’s hearing from plenty of people who are thinking about moving out of the States:

“To each his own, but Canada is a great place. Living in an exotic place is also not the worst thing in the world. If you’re a very high net worth individual, coming to Canada you can live the same life. The difference between NYC and Chicago and NYC and Toronto is nothing.”

A recent poll found more than one in every four Americans would “consider leaving” the U.S. if Trump wins, with others saying similar things if Hillary wins.

ajax_url = “http://bit.ly/2bzwBry;;

Would you consider leaving the country because of election results?

Yes, I’d leave if Hillary were elected.

Yes, I’d leave if Trump were elected.

No

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Source: independent journal

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Colin Kaepernick Finally Responds to All the Backlash From American People: Will “Continue to Sit”

The story of the weekend was America’s reaction to 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick saying he sat during the National Anthem to protest America’s treatment of black people.

In an interview Sunday, Kaepernick defended his actions, saying that rather than distracting people, it will “unify” America and his team:

“If we have these conversations, there’s a better understanding of where both sides are coming from. And if we reach common ground, and can understand what everybody’s going through, we can really affect change. And make sure that everyone is treated equally and has the same freedom.”

The backup quarterback has drawn a swift response from other football teams:

NY Giants Send Loud & Clear Message to America After Kaepernick Refuses to Stand for National Anthemhttp://bit.ly/2c3yEVr

— Independent Journal (@TheIJR) August 29, 2016

In addition to veterans:

Army Ranger Vet Tells Colin Kaepernick What He Should Be Doing Instead of Sitting Out Nat’l Anthemhttp://bit.ly/2bLOeH8

— Independent Journal (@TheIJR) August 27, 2016

But he insisted that his actions aren’t out of disrespect:

“I have great respect for the men and women that have fought for this country,” said Kaepernick. “I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. And they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice, for everyone. That’s not happening.

“People are dying in vain because this country isn’t holding their end of the bargain up, as far as giving freedom and justice, liberty to everybody. That’s something that’s not happening.

“I’ve seen circumstances where men and women that have been in the military have come back and been treated unjustly by the country they fought have for, and have been murdered by the country they fought for, on our land. That’s not right.”

He also had a fierce message for both presidential candidates, saying Donald Trump is “openly racist” and bringing up Hillary Clinton’s “super predators” comments on “black teens”.

But he stood by his actions, and says he’ll keep doing the same thing:

“I’ll continue to sit. … I’m going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed. To me, this is something that has to change, and when there’s significant change — and I feel like that flag represents what it’s supposed to represent, and this country is representing people the way it’s supposed to — I’ll stand.”

He added:

“There are a lot things that are going on that are unjust,” he said. “People aren’t being held accountable for. And that’s something that needs to change. That’s something that this country stands for freedom, liberty and justice for all. And it’s not happening for all right now.”

Americans obviously have a very polarized response to Kaepernick’s actions, and now it’s clear that he has no regrets for his actions.

So, how will the crowd respond next week when Kaepernick remains seated during the National Anthem?

The post Colin Kaepernick Finally Responds to All the Backlash From American People: Will “Continue to Sit” appeared first on Independent Journal Review.

Source: independent journal

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For 48 Years He Didn’t Want to See His Old Vietnam Marine Buddies. This Year, He Made an Exception.

Rudy Gomez says that when he was a Marine deployed in Vietnam, he was warned not to get too close to the guys in his unit:

“I always heard, ‘Don’t make very good close friendships because you might not be here in the next minute.’”

So, he told 10News, he didn’t. In fact, he’d avoided getting together with his buddies for all of the subsequent 48 years.

Gomez enlisted in the Marines because as he put it:

“I’d seen too many John Wayne movies and I always wanted to be a Marine. They were instilled in my brain, watching those war movies.”

Gomez was part of the storied 3/26 Marines, men who fought in World War II in the Battle of Iwo Jima before the 5th Marine Division was deactivated.

Image Credit: Screenshot/YouTube

The 3/26 was reactivated in 1966 when Rudy and his buddies saw action in Vietnam. They fought in the bloody Battle of Khe Sanh, a battle in which, for 77 days, 6,000 Marines — including Rudy Gomez and his buddies — protected a crucial air strip by holding off a 20,000 man communist force.

History.com describes the scene:

“U.S. Marines and their South Vietnamese allies fought off an intense siege of the garrison, in one of the longest and bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War. Meanwhile, with U.S. and South Vietnamese attention focused on Khe Sanh, North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces launched the Tet Offensive, a series of coordinated surprise attacks on cities and towns throughout South Vietnam.”

Sergeant Gomez served under Marine legend Chesty Puller’s son-in-law and was assigned to protect “Hill 881 South” in Khe Sanh.

“We lost a lot of people. One of the snipers that they had missed me four times from about five inches away, kicking up the dirt as I’m face down, laying on the dirt. I moved to the right. He shot again about a foot a way. Backed up. Missed again. …[G]renades were thrown overhead.”

He was in the middle of hell. He kept his head down amid the sniper fire:

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They were surrounded. He said he warned his Lieutenant to keep his head down, but he didn’t — something that “pisses off” Gomez to this day.

Gomez told 10News it was horrible:

“A lot of fellow Marines falling down to the left and to the right of me. All of the sudden I see this explosion.”

The next morning, the Tet Offensive started and his hill was one of the targets.

He was wounded — blinded in his left eye. While in the hospital thumbing through magazines trying to find information about the war, he saw a photo of himself in Newsweek Magazine:

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Despite all those movies he’d watched as a kid where John Wayne was best buddies with his guys and all, he couldn’t remember the names of the men he’d served in combat.

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He avoided his unit’s reunions. Though he’d worked for 33 years at the Post Office, his PTSD made going outside and engaging in unfamiliar activities awkward. Hard. He still didn’t want to get too close. He just wanted to forget.

In Gomez’s oral history recorded by YouTube user, “Visual Journalist” (see below) he said maybe someday he would change his mind about seeing guys in his unit. Maybe someday, he reasoned, he’d want to see these guys, whose names he couldn’t even remember, again:

“I’m hoping to go to one of these reunions very soon.”

This week after 48 years, Gomez decided to reunite with his old unit at a commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the reactivation of the 3/26 Marines, which was held at San Diego’s Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial.

Image Credit: Screenshot/10News

The memorial sits atop a peaceful hill overlooking the turquoise blue Pacific Ocean. It has been the subject of legal battles over the cross that marks the site.

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But it was here that Gomez found peace:

Image Credit: Screenshot/10News

Gomez’s unit sealed the reunion with a plaque honoring the unit and its sacrifice:

Image Credit: Screenshot/10News

Rudy Gomez’s unit in Vietnam lost 391 men from 1966-1970.

Looking back on his service, Gomez said the only public display of thanks after he came back from Vietnam was a bartender at a bowling alley who bought him a drink and escorted him home.

See his story below.

The post For 48 Years He Didn’t Want to See His Old Vietnam Marine Buddies. This Year, He Made an Exception. appeared first on Independent Journal Review.

Source: independent journal

The post For 48 Years He Didn’t Want to See His Old Vietnam Marine Buddies. This Year, He Made an Exception. appeared first on .@tonygreene113.

Americans Give 4 Powerful Reasons Kaepernick’s Excuse for Snubbing National Anthem Doesn’t Fly

49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick is taking a lot of heat for choosing to sit down during the National Anthem in a pre-season game on Friday night.

Kaepernick explained the reason he didn’t stand:

“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way.

There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.”

Kaepernick’s controversial choice is making headlines everywhere and has been trending on Twitter all day:

Image Credit: Twitter/Screenshot

And many Americans pointed out four reasons his excuse doesn’t quite connect with them.

1. Both of the parents who raised him are white:

Here’s #Colin_Kaepernick being Oppressed by White ppl WAIT that’s just his Parents Anothr $19million a yr #Hypocrite http://pic.twitter.com/peK53PtFD2

— USA VOTE (@TalentsMomMLG) August 27, 2016

2. He doesn’t understand what a police officer’s job is like:

Better yet, #Colin_Kaepernick, retire from the NFL, enter a police academy, then show us all how it’s supposed to be done. For $50K per yr.

— FrantzRadio (@FrantzRadio) August 27, 2016

3. He’d be hard-pressed to find another country that provides the same opportunity he’s had here:

Kaepernick could do us all a big favor by explaining what other country provides a path resembling the one he took. http://bit.ly/2bLP86s

— Dan Bongino (@dbongino) August 27, 2016

4. This U.S. Marine is still standing for the National Anthem:

Kaepernick refusing to stand for natl anthem is his right. Here’s a Marine, who can’t stand, because he defended it http://pic.twitter.com/mLjTUPQ2pm

— Nick Short (@PoliticalShort) August 27, 2016

While Kaepernick doesn’t appear to be winning many battles with his justification for sitting out the anthem, some people have also pointed out that the football player gives time and resources to various charities. For example, he volunteers a great deal of his time helping children who have heart disease.

Kaepernick has already shown the world that he’s an activist and philanthropist in his own right, but this recent “stand” seems to be taking center stage for the time being.

The post Americans Give 4 Powerful Reasons Kaepernick’s Excuse for Snubbing National Anthem Doesn’t Fly appeared first on Independent Journal Review.

Source: independent journal

The post Americans Give 4 Powerful Reasons Kaepernick’s Excuse for Snubbing National Anthem Doesn’t Fly appeared first on .@tonygreene113.