You may look at the question in the wrong light - you may look at the question and ask yourself "Do I support the war?". That, however, is not the question I am asking here. You may or may not support the war, the reasons for going to war (however cloudy they may be in your opinion). But what is important here is that you support those who are making the sacrifices necessary to make the world a safer place...
For example - you may have one of those magnetic "Support Our Troops" ribbons on your vehicle. Great - but it kinda goes downhill when you have 20 slapped all over the back of your car, van, truck etc. That kind of defeats the point - now it becomes something else, something cheaper. I look about the place and see this occurring far too often.
There are other ways as well - supply drives, making care packages, sending letters, reading blogs (and responding to them as well). With the last, in my own personal experience back in my MySpace days I read the blog of an online acquaintance of mine who was stationed for a period of time with his unit of the TX ANG in Balad (please correct me if I'm wrong Derek!). To me, that's support - keeping the men and women of our armed forces in our hearts and prayers on a daily basis. I also read the blogs of various others (including the controversial "CBFTW' by Colby Buzzell until the military had it shut down). There's support.
In my community there is a Guardsman who was injured (read: lost his legs) by an IED outside of Fallujah about a year and a half ago, who, in the same blast, lost two of his best friends. To support him and his family, I donated to the fundraising efforts to make his house more capable to support him and his family.
Oh, just noticed it - I wear one of those rubber bracelets - in this case camo with "Support The Guard" on it... It always serves as a reminder to me.
There are just so many ways to support these people. Yet, as I think about this, the actions of others just pisses me off...
I think about Cindy Sheehan and her crusade against Bush. All that time I said "give it up, Cindy", and finally she has quit. Though the press makes her out to be "the winner". Excuse me, but Fuck Off.
What also pisses me off is when the clergy decides to get involved... When you are listening to the Sunday Sermon and the Pastor throws into the mix about how we are involved in the "unjust fight" in Iraq and we must pull our troops out right away - get out. You have no right to bring such political statements inside the Church. If you feel that way on a personal level, fine and well. But bring that into the Church environment, try and ram it down our throats during sermon... let's just say my wife had to restrain me from standing up and saying something... This, by the way, was last Easter, and as I looked around, among those sitting in the pews was a Marine in dress blues with the rest of his family. I could visibly see him stiffen when that subject matter was brought up...
And that's what I'm getting at - whatever your feelings about the right or wrong about the fight against terrorism, in all it's forms, support the troops. It isn't hard. You're not going to be put out by doing so. And you know what? It's appreciated.
Examples:
1) The good way:
2) The wrong way:
2 comments:
AMEN to that!
Great work.
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