Okay, so... I cant remember the *name* of the episode.... I am *so* ashamed
But..... It was the one where he was saving the gray wolf, and Hope and Faith came and got him outta the trap, and.... FAITH, HOPE & CHARITY - that it!!!
Lol - aanyway, did anyone notice that red bracelet that hes wearing? It looks like kinda an inch wide red metal band that goes all the way around and has something etched on it. I think I saw someone else on tv wearing one for some military thing that looked just like it! Anyway... I always wondered what it was, and no one ever knows! I even looked at all the rest of the episode for it, and its only seen at certain times. Maybe its something that RDA was wearing, and didnt take it off? Id *love* to know! Anyone seen it too, or know what it is; pleeeease help!!???

I heard that it was a MIA (Soldiers Missing In Action) memorial bracelet, but I can not give you any authority for it... secondhand information, I'm afraid.

Hi Sodvest. Welcome to our community.

you'll find the answer to your question.. along with many more in our F.A.Q. section of the site.

OMG - OMG - OMG!! That is *so* great!!! It does say what it was in the QnA's, **thanks** Rocketeer! Your right too Lothithil! I can not believe that was so easy! Iv been asking random Mac fan site people since forever, and no one ever even knew what I was talking about. You guys are the coolest !!!! I knew this site was the best!!!
Do you think it was someone in *his* family... or someone that he knew?? Lol - Im all jazzed that you guys knew that, Im on a kick now

I don't know if he new the person on it or not.

I think those bracelets could be purchased from various places as a "support our troops" type deal.

So my guess would be that he didn't know them.

Theres a certain irony to MacGyver (of all people) the "Anti-violent", wearing a bracelet in support of military action.

There is some irony to it- but I think as much as MacGyver tends to be a pacificist- and definitely anti-violence, he's also very much patriotic and supportive of those who are serving their country, even if he doesn't necessarily agree with a war or whatever.

All I know (as to why RDA would wear one at that time) is that everyone and their dogs were wearing them in the early nineties. Very trendy with the first Gulf War and all that. Oh, wait...the first police action...

My father served in both Vietnam and the first Gulf conflict. Talk about different receptions upon return...but we won't go there....

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the bracelets were a show of support for the troops as people, not necessarity the military action they were involved in by the government. We sometimes tend to forget and lump soldiers all together as "the military". They are individuals, with families and private lives, hopes and dreams of their own. To me, that's what the bracelets represent.

Absolutely, and the bracelets were for POWs and MIAs, mostly from the Vietnam era, which I think is a cause that is very worthwhile. I was merely saying that they got very popular for a while there. That wasn't a bad thing, it just was.

As for private lives of servicemen and women, I lived it and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I loved growing up military.

Anyone who's interested, check out www.militarybrats.com; You'll find me there!

So the bracelet wasn't for the gulf war?

Not necessarily. In fact, while many wore them then, I would say no. Not directly, anyway. Those bracelets were engraved with the names of soilders who were MIA or POWs. Vietnam was (and is) the most common one to see, because, well, we had (have?) a lot of POWs there, and the Gulf War was just starting, so there weren't many (any?) there (yet). It took a few years to even see them for Gulf War POWs, so Mac's bracelet is likely from a Vietnam POW. The Gulf War sparked a renewed interest in Vietnam and because of the tremendous outpouring of support for the troops in the Gulf, many people changed their tune about how Vietnam vets were treated, and Vietnam support got a big boost.

I have seen a few bracelets, in memorium, from the World Wars, but these are rare and special order things, like those for KIAs (which are generally black). The POW bracelets were (and are, from what I have seen) mostly a Vietnam thing. That's when they started. These were very popular in the seventies (at least with military families). You can still buy them, and get them engraved with a loved one, family member, stranger...whomever, as long as they are MIA or POW, from any recent conflict. There are even accepted ways of acknowledging if your POW (or his or her remains) return(s) home-some send the bracelet to the POW or their family through POW channels, some add a star to the bracelet to show their POW is home but continue to wear it as a show of support until they all come home, etc.

They aren't really a 'support our troops' thing but a 'you are not forgotten' thing. They are worn as both, and rightfully so, but they are meant as POW remembrances.

They are generally worn not in support of any military action or conflict, but as a reminder to never, ever, give up on getting our boys back home.

http://www.powbracelets.com/

Here is a history site on them:

http://www.pow-miafamilies.org/bracelets.html

You can also purchase bracelets here, from another source. Looks like there are several places that make them, but I think I would look into where the monies go before ordering any, as it looks like some just make them and others donate the funds to the actual POW/MIA organizations.

Anyway.

Here's to the missing men of the 366th, and all others.

Once a Gunfighter, always a Gunfighter. Here's to you, Dad.

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And just because I have to share...

How MacGyver is the 366th? Here is an excerpt from a history of the 366th, first activated in 1943 and still serving today.

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366th Tactical Fighter Wing (1958-1972)

On 1 July 1958, as part of an Air Force-wide renaming of units, Air Force redesignated the 366th Fighter-Bomber Wing as the 366th Tactical Fighter Wing. Shortly thereafter, however, a general drawdown in U.S. forces prompted the wing's second inactivation, which occurred April 1, 1959. But the intensification of the Cold War in the early 1960s brought the 366th TFW back to life at Chaumont AB, France, in April 1962. This marked the first peacetime activation of a wing at an overseas location. Throughout its time in France, the wing flew the F-84F, deploying regularly to Libya for gunnery training.

The wing returned to the United States in July 1963 and its new home at Holloman AFB, New Mexico as a result of French president Charles DeGaulle's deep suspicion of "supranational organizations" and his country's shift away from the NATO orbit in the early 1960s that ultimately led to the closure of American air bases in France. At Holloman, the wing began converting to the new F-4C Phantom II in February 1965. Later that year, the wing sent its first squadron to the Republic of Vietnam. The 390th Fighter Squadron was assigned to Da Nang AB, Republic of Vietnam, and the 391st went to Cam Ranh Bay AB in early 1966. By March, the rest of the wing entered the conflict and moved to Phan Rang AB, Republic of Vietnam.

The 366th TFW moved to Da Nang AB, Republic of Vietnam and regained the 390th FS in October 1966. While at Da Nang, pilots noted they were missing opportunities to shoot down enemy MiGs because the F-4C lacked a cannon and its missiles were ineffective at short ranges. So wing maintainers mounted an external 20-millimeter Gatling gun pod on the F-4Cs, and in less than a month the wing's pilots had scored four MiG kills. The gun pod innovation and the MiG kills that followed earned the wing the nickname it carries today, the "Gunfighters." During this period, the wing earned a Presidential Unit Citation for shooting down 11 enemy aircraft in a three-month period.

By May 1968, the wing had upgraded to the F-4D aircraft, and then in 1969, two squadrons of F-4Es joined the wing. After this, the F-4Ds assumed forward air control duties, while the more advanced F-4Es concentrated on aircraft escort duties and conducted ground attack missions. By November 1971, the 366th was the only United States tactical fighter wing still stationed in Vietnam.

Between 1966 and 1972, the Gunfighters logged 18 confirmed MiG kills in Vietnam. Upon the wing's returned to the United States in October 1972, Captain Lance P. Sijan, a 366th pilot shot down in 1967, was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions as a prisoner of war.

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Forgive my pride, but my dad was an enlisted man who served as an aircraft mechanic on the F4 in Vietnam (Phantom Phixer!). He hasn't told me much, but he did tell me about mounting guns on planes. My childhood club was immediately dubbed The Gunfighters, and as an adult I researched this group. I'd still call my club The Gunfighters.

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P.S.-for those of you who have read my Stargate fanfiction story entitled 'Acceptable Risk'...you see now why I just love Siler and had to give him a big, fat hero role there!

Here's to enlisted men with big wrenches.

I LOVE Siler! Of course Jack is my favorite main character , but besides the chevron guy, I'd say Siler is my favorite secondary character. The poor guy gets beat up a lot, though. At least Dan Shea's a stunt guy--he can take it.

Well, chevron guy, AKA Chief Master Sergeant Walter Harriman, plays a role in said fic, too! Yeah, Walter and Siler...good times! Ever notice how many times Siler is in the infirmary in the background when SG-1 is injured? Running joke, but it never gets old.

"Why does this always happen to ME?" (Siler, on getting knocked across the room by an explosion in '200'. I laughed until I cried...)

Of course, my favorite Siler moment has GOT to be in Reckoning, Part 2 when Jack and Reynolds save him when he's trapped by the replicators...Jack tells Siler he better get put in his will for it, and Siler responds with: "You already are, sir."

Also... notice that Siler's faithful "companion" is director Martin Wood. He's always holding tools for Siler, and, Siler's wrenches get progressively bigger and bigger as the years go by... (another joke). Then there's the Pineapples....