Private Ryan’s Prayer

“Dear Lord, let me find peace and closure! My children and grandchildren are here with me today because of You. To be honest with You, I wasn’t sure how I’d feel remembering that day. Everyday I think about it, I tried to live my life the best that I could. I hope that was enough. […]

KIA: LTC Dennis Villanueva ‘86

Philippine troops take rebel stronghold Troops have captured the main stronghold of Muslim separatists and pursued them from a town where they attacked an army detachment, triggering clashes that have killed more than 60 people, military officials said. Reinforcements have been flown in to bolster Filipino troops Published On  11 Feb 2005 About 300 armed followers […]

Reaction from Demet

DEMET Good Lord GOD, how brave those soldiers were and how untrustworthy these rebels are. I can’t recall the exact date where Gen. Bautista (was it?) was also lured to his death by treacherous act of yes sadly, another muslim rebel. It only shows that since time immemorial they have this penchant to trick government […]

From The Washington Post

EDWIN B PEDROSO The Washington’s Post“Democracy Dies in Darkness “ Killings Embitter Philippine Moslem Revolt By Ab TanMarch 31, 1981 Efforts to settle, a festering Moslem rebellion against this country’s authoritarian Christian government have suffered a drastic setback because of a Moslem murder of 122 Philippine Army soldiers on nearby Pata Island and a military […]

Soldiers, leave your cellphones behind!

Let’s take our cue from General Robert Neller, the commandant of the US Marine Corps. He is now requiring all his marines NOT to bring their cellphones during combat operations. With cellphones, he said that they are letting their enemies easily track them down, monitor their movements, plot their positions and make them vulnerable for […]

ANTING-ANTING

By J. Irving The jeep’s headlights remained unlit, as the vehicle cutting through the thick tropical silhouettes, starting to get dark, bouncing along the dirt road, winding through coconut groves and dense underbrush on the outskirts of Jolo town, towards Tandiong Beach, the the home of the returning soldiers – at the 4th Infantry “Scorpion” […]

THE PATA ISLAND MASSACRE, WHO CARES?

(As published in the Jan/Feb’06 issue of The Cavalier Magazine) by J. Irving The incident will turn silver this February 2006. Totally forgotten! Nobody remembers anymore the 119 souls who perished in Pata Island on the disastrous day of 12 February 1981, one day before Friday the 13th. I was then a very young 2LT […]