“You’re exactly where you need to be.”

What a story this is:

“I saw Ben fall to the ground,” Morgan* said. “I made it there first and he had already regained his composure and was trying to fix his leg. I asked if he needed help and he said, ‘No, I just want to finish the race.’ ”

But a screw had come out of the prosthetic, and Baltz couldn’t fix it himself. So Morgan said he told him to hop on, and gave him a piggyback ride to the finish.
...
Morgan said he was just there to do the right thing. His commanding officer, Capt. Frank Anderson, said he wasn’t at all surprised by Morgan’s reaction. He said his Marine has the mindset of excellence in everything he does.

“We are selfless as an institution in the Marine Corps,” Anderson said. “Putting others before ourselves is second nature. I’m very pleased with the fact that a young man who is younger than my youngest brother gets the big picture.”
...
Baltz’s dad, J.C., a former Air Force pilot turned commercial pilot, said the Marines who were there that morning showed the spirit of the Corps.

“For the Marines to come out there that early in the morning on a Sunday to volunteer their time by helping set up and police the whole area, it just shows how darn caring they are,” he said.

He said his son was a little miffed that he couldn’t finish the race on his own. But Morgan said he knows if his leg hadn’t broken, Baltz would’ve completed the run.

“As far as I’m concerned, he finished that race,” Morgan said. “As long as he knows he could’ve finished it and wanted to finish it, that’s all that matters.”

Anderson said Baltz should know that even America’s toughest warriors get carried from the battlefield sometimes, and Marines don’t leave anyone behind.

J.C. Baltz said Marines reflect the resiliency of the country, just as his son reflects the resiliency of children.

“It’s damn hard to make the decision to amputate your child,” he said. “He was 6 and never really knew any different. We just want him to be a kid and have fun, which is why I encourage him to be an athlete."

* Pfc. Matthew Morgan, 19, a communications signals collection operator/analyst with Marine Detachment Corry Station in Pensacola, Fla.



---------------------
Speaking of stories,
it's officially been confirmed at yesterday's hearings that the CIA is operating in Libya.

Considering the cursory coverage the media initially gave to U.S. involvement under the guise of U.N. intervention into that country's revolution, maybe now is the time for some hungry journalists to fully investigate the U.S. role, apparently ongoing...

Is it wise for our tentacles to have such a reach? Might the Libyan people who sacked the compound presumably for intelligence information gathered be considered "freedom fighters" under other analysis, if it turns out the U.S. is meddling in internal affairs?

Do we assume that because our soldiers are the bravest and the best in their training, that the mission is necessarily justified by our alleged leadership and bureaucrats in the know?

I'd love to see yesterday's revelations spark an in-depth look at this country's role in the Libyan leadership, and what our aims are over there exactly? Nevermind the "classified" excuses. What was it the late NYT leader said about the convenience of "classifying" such material as secret?

How can we judge effective outcomes? Plus, if what is being done over there is being done effectively, and with good reason, why the need to keep the people here in the dark? Shine a little light, and justify or sell us on these actions, the need for intervention in this particular foreign land...

There's a big-picture story there all right:
Dig, dig, get dirty and dig. Who wants the job?
(JournO -lists, naturally, need not apply...)

Plus:
Hell... double-click this one for the close up:

Snarkiness, and pushing one's way to the top in an underhanded manner, ultimately repels;  true camaraderie, and selflessness, wins the day and attracts followers far beyond imagination...

Never too late to learn.