[Vision2020] Marine’s Sarah Palin Tattoo the Butt of Jokes

[Tom Hansen]

How do you show your support for Sarah Palin? Well if you are this marine
you get a tattoo of her face on your butt.

Courtesy of the Military Times at:

http://militarytimes.com/blogs/battle-rattle/2010/05/27/gunnys-sarah-palin-tattoo-the-butt-of-jokes/

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Marine’s cheeky Sarah Palin tattoo the butt of jokes

MARJAH, Afghanistan – When I came to Afghanistan, I expected to find many
strange and unusual sights.

A gunnery sergeant with a tattoo of Sarah Palin on his buttocks wasn’t one
of them.

So it is, however. Within minutes of meeting Marines who patrol this
former Taliban stronghold from the Yellow Schoolhouse, a rundown former
Afghan school here, I was asked my opinion about Palin, a hero to many
politically conservative Americans. Before I had a chance to answer,
however, I was introduced to fun-loving Gunnery Sgt. Benjamin Lepping’s
left butt cheek.

Sure enough, there’s a realistic caricature of Palin there, perhaps four
inches wide and five inches tall. She’s wearing her trademark glasses and
smiling, her hair in a bun.

Lepping, a technician with 1st Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company out of
Camp Pendleton, Calif., said he got the tattoo last June while on a
routine assignment in Alaska. He and a few colleagues were sent there to
clear ordnance from Air Force bombing ranges, and apparently had quite a
bit of fun enjoying the nightlife after work each night.

“On the way back, I decided I wanted to get a tattoo that reminded me of
Alaska, because we really had a good time,” said Lepping, currently
attached to India Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines. “I decided, ‘What
could be better than getting a tattoo of the hottest cougar in the
Republican Party?’”

Originally from Louisville, Ky., Lepping goes by the nickname “Gus,” a
shortened version of his middle name, Gustav. He estimates he has about 30
tattoos, including a full sleeve on his left arm that pays homage to his
job in a colorful mural that includes a variety of bombs and EOD
lettering.

He’s also known for his quirkiness: Most nights, for example, he takes his
bedding outside and falls asleep on the front stoop of the quarters where
his fellow Marines live. He also has a tattoo on right butt cheek of the
Southern Cross, the constellation of stars on the Australian flag.

“I had a good time in Australia,” he offered with a shrug.

Lepping said he is a fan of Palin’s, and hopes to meet her someday.

“If it was going to be a funny tattoo, I figured it had to be in a funny
place,” he said. “I’d say it’s pretty famous in the southern California
area.”

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Gunnery Sgt. Benjamin Lepping, an explosive ordnance disposal technician
currently deployed to Afghanistan, says former vice presidential candidate
Sarah Palin is "the hottest cougar in the Republican Party."

http://militarytimes.com/blogs/battle-rattle/files/2010/05/Lepping-tattoo.jpg

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Gunnery Sergeant Benjamin Lepping

http://militarytimes.com/blogs/battle-rattle/files/2010/05/051410mc_tattoo003.jpg

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Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"The Pessimist complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to change
and the Realist adjusts his sails."

- Unknown