via Josh Irving at SupportOurSeals.com

As most of you know, some of our military’s most elite, the Navy SEALs are under fire from the US Government for allegedly assaulting one of the most wanted terrorists in Iraq. Ahmed Hashim Abed is the suspected mastermind of the murder and mutilation of four Blackwater USA security guards in Fallujah in 2004. Special Warfare Operators 2nd Class Matthew McCabe and Jonathan Keefe, and Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Julio Huertas all face charges including allegedly punching Abed while being detained.
This past December, all 3 SEALs were arraigned and plead not guilty to the charges stemming from the alleged abuse of Abed. The 3 SEALs refused Non-Judicial Punishment (Captain’s Mast) which is based on an assumption of guilt resulting in consequences that can be career changing, and opted to take their chances with a Special Courts-Marshal to prove their innocents. Their trials are set to begin in 2010 and if convicted, they carry a federal conviction that will follow them throughout their lives, and punishment that can include a year detention and a separation from the service with an Other than Honorable Discharge.

The charges being brought against these SEALs, if guilty, warrant nothing more than a slap on the wrist. These guys do not deserve this; they deserve to be treated like heroes for doing the jobs that 99.999% of American couldn’t even fathom. Yet, here they are being thrown up on the chopping block by non other than the US Government. The country they swore to defend is now feeding them to the wolves. And to add insult to injury, Chapter 18 of the Al Qaeda training manual released by the US Justice Department says that members must complain of torture and mistreatment inflicted on them. They’re trained to use our own system against us!

I’m sure all of you agree that this is a complete outrage and mockery of our US Military. As Americans, we CANNOT stand for this and MUST show support for our troops who are constantly being put in harms way to protect the country that is now bringing them under fire.

Two of the 3 SEALs, Matthew McCabe (accused of punching Abed) & Julio Huertas went before a judge on Dec 7, 2009 and are scheduled to being trail in January, 2010. A very successful Support Rally for the 3 SEALs was also held that same day outside the Norfolk Naval Base in Norfolk, VA. Several hundred supporters came and went throughout the morning waving flags and holding signs as the 2 SEALs appeared in court. You can read more about the rally that took place at: http://www.SupportOurSEALs.com. The 3rd SEAL, Jonathan Keefe was arraigned on Tuesday, Dec 22, and his trial is set to begin in April, 2010.

Currently, nation wide Support Rallies are being planned for Jan 19, 2009 for various locations all across the U.S. This is the day Matthew McCabe’s trail starts and we want the world to know we stand behind these guys and support them. The more local media coverage we get from coast to coast, the more national coverage these 3 SEALs will get. As of right now, we are hearing of rallies coming together at the following locations, but will know more as it gets closer to the 19th:
• Naval Station Norfolk in Norfolk, VA
• Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque, NM : http://www.meetup.com/Southwest-Patriots/calendar/12123784
• Perrysburg, OH, the Home Town of Matthew McCabe: http://www.meetup.com/the-children-of-liberty-d5/calendar/12127984/
• Naval Base San Diego in San Diego, CA
• Fort Hood in Killeen, TX
• Fort Worth Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Fort Worth, TX
And hopefully many more across the nation! We will continue to update everyone as more details about these rallies become available and PLEASE let us know ASAP if you are planning one in your area that day so we can help you promote it.

We want to stress to everyone that these are not protests, but instead rallies to show support for these 3 brave warriors. As Scott Taylor put it, “We are not against the military, we are supporting our boys. We stand against the political correctness being placed upon our brave men and women in a war zone. We agree that what these warriors are being alleged to have done warrants nothing more than someone telling you to stop. We applaud their brave actions in capturing this terrorist who was responsible for planning, killing, mutilating, and hanging 4 American citizens from a bridge in Fallujah. This then caused the invasion of Fallujah, costing many more American lives. Kudos to all of you out there showing leadership and standing by these men.”

If you are unsure you will be able to attend one of these rallies, PLEASE mark the RSVP for this event as “Maybe Attending” so we can continue to keep you updated.

Also, there are several groups / sites out there asking for donations in relation to the situation surrounding this case. PLEASE make sure you exercise due diligence when choosing to contribute to a defense fund. I know of one site in particular that is asking for donations so they can air the story on cable. As of right now, the legal costs for these 3 SEALs are extremely high and they have to cover those cost with money out of their own pocket. So, we are putting the call out to ALL Americans across the nation to help support these guys. The US Navy SEAL/Warrior Legal Defense Fund has been setup so donations can be made, and 100% of proceeds go directly to the 3 representing lawyers specifically for these SEALs on trial. Also, it’s been reported that there’s a possibility the trial could go over seas. If this happens, the legal fees could go much, much higher. And YES, I did say there’s a chance the trial could be held in Iraq since the accuser is an Iraqi prisoner. You can find out more about this particular defense fund at our website: http://www.SupportOurSEALs.com.

Lastly, please help us spread the word by doing the following:
1. Invite everyone you know and encourage them to do the same. Even if you’re not in the area, we need to get the word out to those who are. You can do this by clicking on the link “Invite People to Come”
2. Share this event with your friends. You can do this by clicking on the button “Share +”. This will post the event on your home page for everyone to see. Both of these links can be found directly under the picture of the SEALs on this page.
3. Post link a link to the website http://www.SupportOurSEALs.com on Facebook pages, groups, walls & also on blogs, forums and other websites talking about this case.

Thanks for your support, Josh