REMEMBERING MIKE SPANN ON MEMORIAL DAY

 

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
REMEMBERING MIKE SPANN

An American worth recalling far more than the ‘American Taliban.’

May 26, 2019  The Editorial Board
The body of CIA officer Johnny “Mike” Spann is carried by Marine honor guards at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland, Dec. 2, 2001. PHOTO: JOE MARQUETTE/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Many Americans were shocked to learn that John Walker Lindh stepped out of an Indiana prison a free man on Thursday, after 17 years behind bars. Dubbed the “American Taliban,” Lindh spent his teenage years in California’s Marin County but ended up captured in Afghanistan as an enemy combatant in the early months after 9/11. In 2002 he accepted a deal in which he pleaded guilty to providing support for the Taliban.

But as understandable as outrage might be, this is Memorial Day weekend, and we do well not to let Lindh overshadow the story about the other American inside that Afghan prison at the same time. He was Johnny “Mike” Spann, a CIA officer who deployed to Afghanistan early in the war. He was killed on November 25, 2001, shortly after interviewing Lindh, when Taliban prisoners rioted. He was 32 years old.

Spann was the first American killed in combat in Afghanistan. Before joining the CIA, Spann was a Marine, leaving with the rank of captain. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery alongside other American men and women who have served their nation in war. He is further honored with a black star on the CIA’s Memorial Wall at its Virginia headquarters, along with 132 other fallen agency colleagues.

So this weekend, as we enjoy our barbecues and kick off the summer, let us not forget how extraordinarily blessed we are to have men and women such as Mike Spann, who willingly placed themselves in harm’s way to preserve our freedom—and paid the ultimate price.

 

Share

Leave a Reply

Search All Posts
Categories