The river

Image courtesy: USGS

Stretching over 700 miles, the Helmand River is the longest waterway in Afghanistan. From the Hindu Kush mountains all the way to Iran, the river serves as a lifeline for thousands of farmers. It also runs through the heart of one of the war on terror's most critical battlefields.

A Pentagon release said Cpl. Joe Wrightsman died on Sunday while supporting combat operations in Helmand province. According to Ed Friedrich's article in The Kitsap Sun, the Marine's unit was training Afghan soldiers when the group tried to cross the fierce river. Langford told the newspaper that after reaching the other side, her grandson noticed a trainee struggling in the water. When he dove back in to help his Afghan counterpart, both men tragically drowned.

Castra Praetoria provides another extraordinary detail. 'America's 1st Sgt.', the site author, served with Wrightsman in Iraq and even recommended his promotion to Corporal based on merit. According to the award-winning military blogger, Wrightsman had difficulty swimming in the past. Yet according to his sources, the brave Marine didn't think twice before jumping back into the Helmand River when he saw a man in need.

"From what I understand the entire Marine Expeditionary Force threw its efforts into recovering Cpl Wrightsman," the blogger posted on Castra Praetoria. "Every type of asset, aircraft, equipment, and personnel were employed. Taliban forces were beginning to move in from the north in an effort to capture the Cpl Wrightsman's body before the Marines. They were thwarted after two days when both bodies were recovered by the Americans."

Wrightsman grew up wanting to be a Marine and joined the military in the spring of 2005. After completing two deployments to Iraq, The Kitsap Sun reports that he enthusiastically embraced the chance to serve in Afghanistan with the 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. His loved ones reportedly tried to talk him out of a third deployment.

"He said he wanted to be there for his country, and he was a Marine to his heart," [grandmother Buffy] Langford said. "He’s one young man who got to live his dreams."

As a journalist who spent eight years inside various newsrooms, I often analyze the national media's coverage of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq on this blog. Almost every day, heroism on the battlefield takes a back seat to the follies of celebrities like Lindsay Lohan or Mel Gibson. In recent years, Afghanistan and Iraq are usually granted substantial airtime only amid major controversies or reports of civilian casualties.

I believe the selfless actions of this 23-year-old Marine belong on front pages all around the homefront. More Americans need to know that men and women they've never met are still putting their lives on the line for Afghans and Iraqis every single day, while also capturing and killing terrorists with plans to attack innocent civilians around the world. Wrightsman's bravery embodies not only our virtuous post-9/11 mission in Afghanistan, but all that makes the United States military the finest fighting force in the world.

Wrightsman also leaves behind his mother, who lives in Jonesboro, Louisiana, and many other family members around the country. Marines like the aforementioned military blogger are also mourning the loss of their brother in arms. Cpl. Joe Wrightsman didn't just earn eight decorations during his military career. He won the respect of the men and women he served alongside.

"Fortunately, America still breeds men with a bias for action who don't dwell on what they can't do," America's 1st Sgt. wrote. "I imagine Cpl Wrightsman thought to himself: 'I can't let this guy down!' Then he heedlessly went after a man who wasn't a fellow Marine or even an American."

Note: Image of Cpl. Joe Wrightsman (right) is used with permission from Castra Praetoria.