Ivan Castro, American Hero.

Washington's other newspaper: Blinded First Lieutenant Proves He 'Can Do This'

It wasn't 1st Lt. Ivan Castro's eyesight, which he lost in Iraq more than a year ago, that knocked him off his pace yesterday at the Marine Corps Marathon. It was his sighted guides.
"His first two guides were women," said George Mannes, who held Castro's left arm as he crossed the finish line in 4 hours 14 minutes 10 seconds. "They both had to make bathroom stops."

Chicks.

I'll bet they went together.

But Castro, 40, was just happy to make it to the finish line. This was only his second marathon and the first since being blinded 1 year 1 month 26 days ago. He easily rattled the number off the top of his head.

"I've got a standard now," Castro said. "I've got a goal to beat next year. This is not the last. This is just the first. You're going to see more of Ivan Castro."

Amen to that, Brother.

Castro, an Army infantry officer stationed in Fort Bragg, N.C., was blinded when his convoy was attacked while on a rooftop in Baghdad. He and two other soldiers were dodging mortars when one hit right in front of him, knocking him unconscious and instantly causing blindness in his right eye. Surgery to remove shrapnel claimed his left eye. The blast killed the other two soldiers.

May God have mercy on their brave souls.

To: Those with IQs over that of a radish
Re: The last paragraph

No, it is not you, kiddies. The convoy was not on the roof. Washington's other newspaper hires according to a reporter's doctrinal orthodoxy, not his ability to write and speak proper English.