GM.

The word “hero” gets thrown around a lot these days, and it's fairly difficult to pinpoint what exactly it has come to mean in our modern context.

My baseline for who (or what) a hero is always goes back to a conversation I had with my old man when I was younger, sitting on the bleachers above an empty soccer field.

To him, a hero is someone — ordinary or otherwise — who acts without selfishness for the good of others, even if it imperils themselves. The thought of what’s in it for themselves doesn’t even come to mind. They just go and… do.

That conversation with my father came a little under 2 months before 9/11, and when the dust settled, my old man’s thoughts were validated when stories of courage and selflessness beyond our comprehension started to rise out of the ashes.

In advance of tomorrow, the 23rd anniversary of 9/11, the following pictures in this thread all have a caption attached, each of them selected as a portrait of heroism. Erik Troelson, a Danish businessman on a work trip to New York City, was stranded in the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel on his way to a meeting when the first plane hit the World Trade Center. Unaware of what was unfolding behind him on Manhattan, Troelson saw a number of FDNY firefighters running up the tunnel with the gear after their apparatuses got stuck behind traffic.

He took a picture, this one specifically.

45 minutes later, this firefighter — 37-year old Gary Box, husband and father of two — was killed during the first collapse.

This was the last photograph ever taken of Gary.

“Do you remember the story of Bill Millin of the 51st Highlanders? Forty years ago today, British troops were pinned down near a bridge, waiting desperately for help. Suddenly, they heard the sound of bagpipes, and some thought they were dreaming. Well, they weren't. They looked up and saw Bill Millin with his bagpipes, leading the reinforcements and ignoring the smack of the bullets into the ground around him.

“Dear Mom, Pop and family,

Now that I am actually here I see that the chances of my returning to all of you are quite slim, therefore I want to write this letter now while I am yet able. I want you to know how much I love each of you. You mean everything to me and it is the realisation of your love that gives me the courage to continue.

”Dear Ma,

Just a few lines tonight to let you know that I'm fine and hope everybody at home is in the best of health. I just finished playing baseball and took a nice shower and now I feel very nice. Hope every thing is going alright at home and don't forget if you ever need money you could cash my war bonds anything you want to. This afternoon I went to church and I received Holy Communion again today. Getting holy, ain't I?

“Do you remember the story of Bill Millin of the 51st Highlanders? Forty years ago today, British troops were pinned down near a bridge, waiting desperately for help. Suddenly, they heard the sound of bagpipes, and some thought they were dreaming. Well, they weren't… They looked up and saw Bill Millin with his bagpipes, leading the reinforcements and ignoring the smack of the bullets into the ground around him.

“Dear Mom, Pop and family,

Now that I am actually here I see that the chances of my returning to all of you are quite slim, therefore I want to write this letter now while I am yet able. I want you to know how much I love each of you.

”Dear Ma,

Just a few lines tonight to let you know that I'm fine and hope everybody at home is in the best of health. I just finished playing baseball and took a nice shower and now I feel very nice. Hope every thing is going alright at home and don't forget if you ever need money you could cash my war bonds anything you want to. This afternoon I went to church and I received Holy Communion again today. Getting holy, ain't I?

“SIXTH BEACH BATTALION
USN, C/O Fleet POST OFFICE
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK
4 July 1944

My Dear Miss O'Donnell:

It is with deep regret and a heart full of sympathy that I am attempting to answer your letter addressed to the Catholic chaplain, 6th Beach Battalion, U.S.N. Your brother, John Thomas O'Donnell, PHM1c, U.S.N. was instantly killed by heavy caliber enemy fire while approaching the French coast on "D" Day, June 6, 1944. His body was returned to England for burial. As yet, I do not know the exact location.

MILES here.

Some years ago, I took apart a speech I had written for a D-Day/Operation Overlord memorial ceremony and I posted some of its content to social media. It’s become something of a tradition — so I’ll do the same this year. Each of these pictures are captioned with a short story or a final letter home, all from those who were there — on and above the beaches of Normandy, during or after the invasion.

Good afternoon, today marks the 2nd part in our series on tactical tips for the tacticool peoples of Tactical Twitter.

This thread is on nutritional consumption. Chewing on your food wastes time and wears down your teeth. Food all comes out as poop regardless, chewing only adds to the time taken during consumption and keeps you out of the fight.

New to Twitter (or at least this side of Twitter), and looking for brands to follow and grab gear or training from?

These are ones we trust implicitly and explicitly.

Thumbs up, LET'S GO: STOCKING MILL COFFEE: @smcroasters

The best coffee, the best people. Period. Active in charity efforts, unabashedly and unashamedly pro-2A, these guys are straight-shooters and they've got good hearts. We love them.

stockingmillcoffee.com

MILES here…

With all the fuss about Twitter lately, I figured I’d weigh in with a few thoughts to ponder.

We’ve been on Twitter for the past 8-9 months, and really active on there for about 7 of those months. Twitter’s been amazing for us, especially in that we don’t easily get shadowbanned, and the community seems to constantly grow, as does our engagement.