I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
President Obama awarded Sgt. 1st Class Leroy A. Petry the Medal of Honor yesterday in the White House, only the ninth person (second living) to receive it during the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars.
President Obama:
“Finally, the service of Leroy Petry speaks to the very essence of America — that spirit that says, no matter how hard the journey, no matter how steep the climb, we don’t quit. We don’t give up. Leroy lost a hand and those wounds in his legs sometimes make it hard for him to stand. But he pushes on, and even joined his fellow Rangers for a grueling 20-mile march. He could have focused only on his own recovery, but today he helps care for other wounded warriors, inspiring them with his example. Given his wounds, he could have retired from the Army, with honor, but he chose to re-enlist — indefinitely. And this past year he returned to Afghanistan — his eighth deployment — back with his Ranger brothers on another mission to keep our country safe.
Petry lost his hand in Eastern Afghanistan while trying to find a top al-Qaeda commander. The Army News Service wrote about his bravery:
Recognizing the threat that the enemy grenade posed to his fellow Rangers, Petry — despite his own wounds and with complete disregard for his personal safety — consciously and deliberately risked his life to move to and secure the live enemy grenade and throw it away from his fellow Rangers, according to battlefield reports.
As Petry released the grenade in the direction of the enemy, preventing the serious injury or death of Higgins and Robinson, it detonated and amputated his right hand.
Petry assessed his wound and placed a tourniquet on his right arm. He then reported that he was still in contact with the enemy and that he had been wounded again.
Petry, a Santa Fe native, was flunking out of Santa Fe High School before transferring to St. Catherine’s Indian School and graduating in 1998. He enlisted in the Army in September 1999. The Santa Fe New Mexican has a special section devoted to Petry.
