Meet Brian Chontosh

[rcecale]

Those of you who might not know, the man on the left is the Commandant of the Marine Corps, and he is proud to know the man on the right. Maybe you'd like to hear about a real American, somebody who honored the uniform he wears.



Churchville-Chili Central School class of 1991. Proud graduate of the Rochester Institute of Technology. Husband and about-to-be father. First lieutenant (now Captain) in the United States Marine Corps. And a genuine hero.

The Secretary of the Navy said so yesterday. At 29 Palms in California Brian Chontosh was presented with the Navy Cross, the second highest award for combat bravery the United States can bestow. That's a big deal. But you won't see it on the network news tonight, and all you read in Brian's hometown newspaper was two paragraphs of nothing. The odd fact about the American media in this war is that it's not covering the American military. The most plugged-in nation in the world is receiving virtually no true information about what its warriors are doing. Oh, sure, there's a body count. We know how many Americans have fallen. And we see those same casket pictures day in and day out. And we're almost on a first-name basis with the jerks who abused the Iraqi prisoners. And we know all about improvised explosive devices and how we lost Fallujah and what Arab public-opinion polls say about us and how the world hates us. We get a non-stop feed of gloom and doom.

But we don't hear about the heroes. The incredibly brave GIs who honorably do their duty. The ones our grandparents would have carried on their shoulders down Fifth Avenue. The ones we completely ignore. Like Brian Chontosh.

It was a year ago on the march into Baghdad. Brian Chontosh was a platoon leader rolling up Highway 1 in a humvee. When all hell broke loose. Ambush city. The young Marines were being cut to ribbons. Mortars, machine guns, rocket propelled grenades. And the kid out of Churchville was in charge. It was do or die and it was up to him. So he moved to the side of his column, looking for a way to lead his men to safety. As he tried to poke a hole through the Iraqi line his humvee came under direct enemy machine gun fire. It was fish in a barrel and the Marines were the fish. And Brian Chontosh gave the order to attack. He told his driver to floor the humvee directly at the machine gun emplacement that was firing at them. And he had the guy on top with the .50 cal unload on them. Within moments there were Iraqis slumped across the machine gun and Chontosh was still advancing, ordering his driver now to take the humvee directly into the Iraqi trench that was attacking his Marines. Over into the battlement the humvee went and out the door Brian Chontosh bailed, carrying an M16 and a Beretta and 228 years of Marine Corps pride.

And he ran down the trench. With its mortars and riflemen, machineguns and grenadiers. And he killed them all. He fought with the M16 until it was out of ammo. Then he fought with the Beretta until it was out of ammo. Then he picked up a dead man's AK47 and fought with that until it was out of ammo. Then he picked up another dead man's AK47 and fought with that until it was out of ammo. At one point he even fired a discarded Iraqi RPG into an enemy cluster, sending attackers flying with its grenade explosion.

When he was done Brian Chontosh had cleared 200 yards of entrenched Iraqis from his platoon's flank. He had killed more than 20 and wounded at least as many more. But that's probably not how he would tell it. He would probably merely say that his Marines were in trouble, and he got them out of trouble. Hoo-ah, and drive on.

"By his outstanding display of decisive leadership, unlimited courage in the face of heavy enemy fire, and utmost devotion to duty, 1st Lt. Chontosh reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service."

That's what the citation says. And that's what nobody will hear. That's what doesn't seem to be making the evening news. Accounts of American valor are dismissed by the press as propaganda, yet accounts of American difficulties are heralded as objectivity. It makes you wonder if the role of the media is to inform or to depress - to report or to deride. To tell the truth, or to feed us lies. But I guess it doesn't matter. We're going to turn out all right. As long as men like Brian Chontosh wear our uniform.

Randy

[rcm]

My hats off.

[MikeCT]

It's really too bad that stuff like this doesn't make it into mainstream media. Here is a guy that risked his life to ensure the safety of others and doesn't even get any public recognition ( in the news at least).

[skipdup]

What a freakin stud...

"I was just doing my job, I did the same thing every other Marine would have done, it was just a passion and love for my Marines, the experience put a lot into perspective," said Chontosh.

[rcecale]

And before all you clowns like creaturecat can start disputing this story, allow me to point you to the following pages...

http://www.snopes.com/politics/military/chontosh.asp

http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/lookupstoryref/200456162723

http://www.homeofheroes.com/verify/02_wot/nc_chontosh.html

And yes, "cat", I did see your post and noticed the cowardly retraction of too. What a tool!

Randy

[skipdup]

Originally posted by rcecale
And yes, "cat", I did see your post and noticed the cowardly retraction of too.

I saw it too... I didn't know you could delete a post like that. I was curious to see what his point was... Like this wasn't a true story or something???

- Skip

[chibone_914]

Thank you Randy for sharing this story with us! God Bless Capt Chontosh for his amazing courage and patriotism!

Okay Libs! Comments please? Liberal Democrats? Anyone out there?.............I thought so.

[Eric 951]

Randy,

Thank you for bringing this hero recognition. As was stated in the body of your post, I had not read nor seen this account on any other news outlet.

The Navy Cross is quite an honor, and one Capt. Chontosh is certainly deserved to receive.

[Oh Haha]

May God bless that Marine and all he protects. I wish we heard more stories like this. I never served in the military but I have the utmost respect for those that did/do.
Thanks for sharing that, Randy.

[speeder]

Originally posted by chibone_914
Thank you Randy for sharing this story with us! God Bless Capt Chontosh for his amazing courage and patriotism!

Okay Libs! Comments please? Liberal Democrats? Anyone out there?.............I thought so.

The Marine Corps turns out some of the finest human beings on earth. What's shocking is that extreme courage is the norm, not the exception w/ them. Still, the Navy Cross is nothing to sneeze at. He is a genuine hero, but you don't have to be a Republican to acknowledge that. He protected his men, and I'm sure that he didn't ask what their politics were first.

I also agree that this story deserves mainstream coverage, it is simply a case of man acting extraordinarily under unfathomable circumstances.

[MikeCT]

The Marines' Hymn is a tribute to warriors and a reverent account of the proud battle history of the Corps. Its verses tell of the honor and glory Marines have earned in battles on every conceivable foreign shore, and leaves no doubt as to the singular mission and passion of the Marine Corps. In fact, British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill so highly regarded the virtue and fighting prowess of the U.S. Marines that he often recited from memory all three verses for other heads of state.


The Marines' Hymn

From the halls of Montezuma
To the shores of Tripoli,
We fight our country's battles
In the air, on land, and sea.
First to fight for right and freedom,
And to keep our honor clean,
We are proud to claim the title
Of United States Marines.

Our flag's unfurl'd to every breeze
From dawn to setting sun;
We have fought in every clime and place
Where we could take a gun.
In the snow of far-off northern lands
And in sunny tropic scenes,
You will find us always on the job -
The United States Marines.

Here's health to you and to our Corps
Which we are proud to serve;
In many a strife we've fought for life
And never lost our nerve.
If the Army and the Navy
Ever look on Heaven's scenes,
They will find the streets are guarded
By United States Marines.

[tabs]

I'm truly sorry our media doesn't publicize or acknowledge the action of a man who cares about his troops....Lyndon Johnson was the LAST LIBERAL HAWK.....you see what it got him....Then you had Eugene McCarthy and George McGOvern (BTW McGovern flew 24 missions in a B-24 over Germany in WW2 and was decorated..so I guess he had a right to be a Dove)... But it my Boomer Generation that has taken power and we are best remembered by being AntiWar activists....we were fed pablum about how ifalible and what good guys we Americans were in school...but unfortunately Boomers only castigate America and don't recognize that no human endevor is without flaws....and even if it flawed you still have to get on with the business of life and if you like civilization...

I was watching The Last Days of WW2 on the History channel...they described the INVASION of Poland in 1939 as an ILLEGAL OCCUPATION....talk about 1984...

[stomachmonkey]

Okay Libs! Comments please? Liberal Democrats? Anyone out there?.............I thought so.

His bravery deserves national media recognition.

What I don't get is how questioning WHY our troops lives are being sacrificed and risked is perceived as non-support of our military? I think it shows the highest form of support. It shows we value their commitment and personal sacrifice to safeguard this country and that we have no desire to put them in danger for no good reason.

Afghanistan, I support that 100%. They harbored Bin Laden and provided him a safe haven from which to launch an attack on us.

If you buy into Iraq then we should also be in N.Korea, Turkey and India. They are all threats to world peace. Why aren't we there?

But since no WMD's have been found and our agenda is now being portrayed as "spreading democracy" and "liberating an oppressed people" I can think of a dozen countries in Africa where we should be sending our troops. Why aren't we there?

I know what military life is about. I grew up in the service. I come from a military family who have served in every conflict from the Civil War to Vietnam.

My father did Korea and volunteered for Vietnam. He would not let me join when I was of age because of his experience in Vietnam. He came to believe that the although the military was still an honorable profession the government was no longer run by men with honor. He did not feel that my life should be entrusted to men that would risk it for the wrong reason.

I guess he was right on that one.

Scott

[tabs]

Originally posted by stomachmonkey



My father..... came to believe that the although the military was still an honorable profession the government was no longer run by men with honor. He did not feel that my life should be entrusted to men that would risk it for the wrong reason.


Scott

This belief of his cuts across Party lines....neither party has a monopoly on virtue nor villiany....you might say this is a statment of the times...when ones word becomes meaningless and all is phony...

[stomachmonkey]

Tabs,

Correct.

Scott

[onewhippedpuppy]

And you thought Rambo was a made up character?! That's why I can't stand most of our media, it's only the negative, I guess that's what gets the ratings. Fox once and a while does a feature on the good the troops are doing, but then goes right back to the bad stuff that happened. You don't hear, "and today, hundreds of thousands of Iraqi kids went to school, and recieved an education", or anything else that benefited the country. While I question the motives, I don't see how the removal of any leader who tortured and killed thousands of his own people can be seen as a bad thing.

[FrayAdjacent911]

Capt Chontosh is a member of one of the other forums I frequent, AR15.com. Several members over there have been in email contact with him since he was deployed in Iraq.

He is one badass Marine, that's for sure. And a very nice guy, to boot.

[mudman]

I bet the man is also a devout NASCAR fan and shops at Walmart.
God bless America

[speeder]

Originally posted by mudman
I bet the man is also a devout NASCAR fan and shops at Walmart.
God bless America

Thanks for that, unibomber.

[mudman]

Just doing my part to save the world...