Bound For Iraq

Funny how sometimes life throws you a curve-ball when you least expect it.

I’ve written a couple of entries this week that pretty much say how I think President Bush has done a good job and how I think that we did the right thing when we sent the military into Afghanistan and Iraq. Maybe this is life’s way of seeing if I’m bluffing with what I said.

For those who don’t know, my “little” brother (who turned 19 last Monday) is in the Army and is stationed in Germany (for the time being anyhow). He went to boot camp straight after high school because he’s wanted to be a soldier ever since he was a little kid, and so now he is.

I also have a brother-in-law who is in the Marine reserve, but was activated almost a year and a half ago. He’s spent that time going to different bases around the US for different kinds of training.

The most recent place he was at was a base in Louisiana, which he just got back from last week. Tonight my sister called and said he’s getting sent to Iraq for a year at the beginning of June.

I’ve thought about this whole thing quite a few times and to be honest, if I hadn’t messed myself up so bad from all the drugs I used to do, I’d probably join up too (I actually almost did end up going to Navy boot camp and was supposed to be a nuclear weapons tech).

There’s really no way I’d ever be accepted by any branch of the military though. It kind of sucks because I really don’t have a problem with the idea of fighting for my country and protecting it, but now I have to rely on other people to do that for me.

I was raised to be proud of my country. I was taught how people throughout our history have risen to take care of business when they had to. I was raised to care about what happens to the fragile thing that we call freedom (which is one of the only ways that I turned out how my parents wanted me to). I was brought up knowing what so many people sacrificed so that I could live my life and not have to even give a thought to the freedoms and “rights” that have been granted to me simply because I was born in the right geographical area.

Sure, people still need to stay here at home and keep things running smoothly when there is conflict somewhere, but I still feel a little useless. I feel like a moocher.

One thing I’ve learned though, both from things I’ve heard and read, and also from talking with my brother and my brother-in-law is that people who are serving in the military have a solid sense of purpose. When they know they have a job to do, they do it.

Despite what war protesters and peaceniks try to make people think, the majority of the troops know why they are doing what they are. Yes, they are sacrificing a lot, but they are proud to do it.

Maybe that’s why I tend to have a very short fuse with people who protest what our country is doing over there. You’ve all seen them. The ones marching around saying they support the troops but not the war (which is total bullshit, and most soldiers will tell you that). The ones who have the signs in their yard that say “Support our troops, bring them home.” The ones who have the “Peace Is Patriotic” bumper stickers.

Does anyone else find it rather strange how with the nearly 1,000 combat deaths that our forces have incurred, there are almost no families of those soldiers getting on TV and criticizing the President or blaming him for the deaths of their loved ones? Does anyone else find it strange how the families of fallen soldiers, if they get on TV at all, are proud of their soldier and understanding of what they were doing?

So yeah…I think that if people don’t agree with what we’re doing, they should just shut-up (at least in areas where they might be heard where our people are fighting). No matter how much they fight or protest, our course has already been set and they aren’t going to change anything. If they really “care” so much about our troops, maybe they should put their money where their mouth is and find the family of someone who is over fighting and help them out.