Nick Popaditch Viciously Attacked in Editorial Cartoon!

I won't dignify the horrendous editorial cartoon, with the likeness of Nick Popaditch, Iraq War hero, Silver  Star/Purple Heart recipient, by showing it the here. The cartoon ran in Saturday's Imperial Valley Press and has even been denounced by his Congressional opponent. It shows a poster, with Gunny-Pop's eye patched image, on a wall and two skate boarding thugs making derogatory remarks about him. Popaditch is a candidate for the United States Congress in California's 51st Congressional District. I refuse to print the cartoon here but if you wish to click on the link to view it, that's your business.


Popaditch became the face of the Iraq War when the picture, tilted the Cigar Marine, was shown on the front pages of  newspapers all over the world. He and his unit were pulling down the statue of Sadam Hussein in Baghdad, at the beginning of the Iraq War, and he stopped to have a celebratory cigar. A year later, in a battle in Falluga, Iraq, images of his U.S.Marine Corps ending injury, the loss of the sight in his right eye, were flashed across the world in video of the battle that actually caught Popaditch being hit by an RPG.  

The hateful West Coast attitude of disrespect toward the Military continued even in the Los Angeles Times apology headline. Popaditch's name is not even mentioned; his opponent's name is. The apology in the Imperial Valley Press  on Tuesday morning is disingenuous at best but, in my opinion, still has a mocking tone.

Popaditch is taking exactly the right attitude in dealing with the cartoon. "I've got much thicker skin than that," he said. "It's not going to hurt me in any way." He is, however, concerned about the attitude of some toward the Military in general and how this will affect other troops.

To get a sense of who this man is and why he deserves to be a United States Congressman view the video trailer to his book, Once a Marine here or on Youtube.





Semper Fi Brother,