Armchair Safari (A Cybercrime Technothriller)
Page 50
It would be easy for a normal person to become paralyzed with what to do. Many of us like to think we would charge into the fray to rescue those in need. But would we? Would we really be willing to charge into a burning building if the heat were so great it sucked the oxygen from our lungs? If we did, would we be able to successfully save anyone trapped inside, or just perish with them in a noble but vain sacrifice?
The answer was a no brainer to the Marines of 3/1. They rallied around one another despite the danger of assaulting what would eventually become known as the infamous “Hell House” of Fallujah. They leveraged their training and never took their eyes off the goal of saving their guys and eliminating the threat. And some of them paid the ultimate sacrifice without a second thought of playing it any other way.
Most Americans forget how much of a charmed life we live. We reside in a country where equality is accepted as an inalienable right, where we can go to sleep in our beds each night and expect that we will not be killed or robbed and that our families will wake up the next morning to start a new day. We turn the faucet on and expect the water to run; we flick on the switch and expect there to be light. We even believe that with hard work and perseverance, it is perfectly feasible to found an internet startup like the one in this story, one that one day might make millionaires out of its employees.
Too often we take these things for granted. Being insulated from the perils of the world trains us to turn a blind eye to the price of security necessary in keeping the evil at bay. But, sadly, evil is absolutely out there. And we should be thankful that the men and women of the U.S. Marines are there to keep us safe.
To Bill and Janet Norwood, I have incredible and sincere appreciation for your generosity in letting me participate in the memory of your son, Byron.
To Jesse Grapes, for your time and patience with me as I put this project together, and letting me borrow a little bit of your story to put a sliver of meaning in a fictitious and escapist story.
To Scott Richter, for setting all of this in motion even though you had no intention to.
Most of all, I’d like to recognize these Marines, these Americans, who went into the breach to do the hard things that needed doing. I am grateful for what you do.
As we all should be.
Thank you for downloading Armchair Safari. I truly hope you enjoyed the story. If you did—please leave a review on amazon.com! Reviews are critical in raising the profile and awareness of independently published books.
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