Semper Fi is not just Republican

Picture courtesy of the White House.gov

Given the times and our nations conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan I am constantly finding myself thinking of our citizens in uniform and in our military. I’m proud of them for doing what they were trained to do. Our military is something that every American should be proud of. Not because you are of one political party or the other but for the fact that they are everyone’s children. In that sense then they are my children as well.

I read the news, watch the television version of the news and every single day the body count goes up for the war in Iraq. It isn’t just a body count, those are people reduced down to a number. Our children that are being killed and shipped home for burial is a personal fact of life when in service to our nation in the military to their families. It disgusts me that they are just a number in the grand scheme of things when it comes to Iraq. I hate the fact that people use the deaths our military men and woman that have died as just another statistic.

My political thoughts run to the liberal side of the aisle but my heart is with my upbringing and a father that was proud to serve his nation in two wars. At no point in my upbringing was it ever suggested or inferred to bash our men and woman in uniform. At no point in my transition from child to man was it insisted that I serve in the military. Real men, like my father, who fought in the bloodiest conflicts during World War II, know what war does to a person. He never wanted any of his children to join the military but he was very proud of his own service to his nation.

Dad never spoke of his personal experience during the war until his later years. Alzheimer’s and dementia took him from me but I wonder if the horror he spoke of is just as bad as our kids serving in Iraq and Afghanistan today? I’m pretty confident that it is but then again he never spoke of it his entire life with me till then. His stories were graphic and very intense and his tears and emotion of keeping it all bottled up for all of those years showed in the sorrow of his face and the anger that he could not have saved more lives. As a medic attached to the Marines he was known as Doc, many of the men he promised to take care of did not make it out alive. He felt that he broke the promise to dozens if not hundreds of men that he considered his brothers. For most of his adult life he could not fall asleep unless he took a Sominex or some other sleep inducing pill.

I wonder how much conflict is coming home with our children in uniform in Iraq and Afghanistan that are wounded or rotating out? I worry about them and if they can ever get back their lives in America. My heart goes out to all veterans because war is hell. Veterans of battle only talk to other veterans of battle for a reason, they don’t want to recall the intensity of their service and pass it on to their children. World War II veterans are classic cases of this point. They know the experience and yet they do not talk about it for a reason. Many friends, many brothers in service died horribly.

Our nation is blessed with a military that is not of any political party. All of the men and woman in service are there for a reason and a purpose and that is to serve America first. Their orders come from a civilian government and they follow the civilian government orders. They serve proud and they serve with the bravest and brightest that America has.

Over in Europe there are mass graves for our military sons and daughters killed in combat. In the battles to come in the Middle East there will be no burial grounds for American soldiers. That is a thought to think about when people tell you that you can fight them here or over there. Sound bites are nice but somebody just died and they should never be just a number. That person was someone’s child or someone’s husband or mother. They died for America and not for any political thought or ideology.

My personal thought is that if our fallen soldiers are not good enough to be buried on Arab soil then they should not be fighting for your freedom.

Papamoka

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Public Opinion on the War in Iraq

Picture Courtesy of Arlington National Cemetery

People really do not need my opinion on the war in Iraq. Most of us already know that the war in Iraq was a sham from the get go now but our political leaders still moved on at full speed to put our nation’s military to do what they do best. They fight the battles and they shed the blood. Our troops are the ones that either come home in a coffin or wounded for life. Political speeches are easy when discussing war when it is not your sons or daughters that could ultimately pay the highest price.

General Patton during World War II was nicknamed Blood and Guts because he had the guts and the troops had the blood. His senior reports loved him because he never relented and success was his only goal. The cost of that Generals success is still buried in Europe. General Patton’s only failure was he never knew how to stop fighting.

I’m not surprised at all to see in the New York Times that the American people trust the Military leaders over the President. That ranks up there with a big old DUHHH!

Military Seen as Best Able to Guide War

By STEVEN LEE MYERS and MEGAN THEE
Published: September 10, 2007

Americans trust military commanders far more than the Bush administration or Congress to bring the war in Iraq to a successful end, and while most favor a withdrawal of American troops beginning next year, they suggested they were open to doing so at a measured pace, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll.

On the eve of what is sure to be a contentious debate on Iraq, the results underscored the benefits to the White House of entrusting the top American commander in Iraq, Gen. David H. Petraeus, to make the case that an increase in American forces this year had been successful enough to continue into next year.

Snip and jump

Only 5 percent of Americans — a strikingly low number for a sitting president’s handling of such a dominant issue — said they most trusted the Bush administration to resolve the war, the poll found. Asked to choose among the administration, Congress and military commanders, 21 percent said they would most trust Congress and 68 percent expressed most trust in military commanders. - New York Times

I once received an email that listed the military records of all the members of Congress. Now I wished I saved it. In the email it turned out that most of the people saying we should go to war had no military service at all in their background. Dick Cheney, nope. Deferment. And the list went on of all the war backers. (If you have a copy of that email please forward it to me @ papamoka@hotmail.com or post it in the comments section.)

Kids of politicians in service to our military would be interesting to see. Jim Webb of Virginia has a son in theatre or I hope by now rotated out. Mitt Romney is running for President and yet none of his sons have served in our nation’s military. Hillary just has the one daughter and she will never see the inside barracks of any military post unless she dates a drill Sergeant. My list could go on but it really does not need to.

The time for diplomacy and withdrawal in Iraq is at hand. That fact is clear to the American people and the President is surrounding himself with yes men and Pro Bush people at every speech he makes. It’s not really a big secret that you can not just show up at any location that this President is going to speak at. You must be vetted and cleared as a supporter to the President to attend.

Our nation and it’s war with Iraq was over the minute our government lied to its people. Someone convinced or ordered Collin Powell to give his speech at the United Nations to go to war and that was a man America trusted. This was a man that his word was right up there with God and our people, our nation, the world trusted his word. Our President used him and abused his trust to get what he and his administration wanted. They cast him aside like a flat tire on the highway and graciously let his credibility go with the tire. Where there was once a man of unprecedented potential to lead, he was used like a playing card in a game of poker. Aces bluff only to reveal a hand of only just a pair of lowly deuces. For some odd reason I would trust Collin Powell over our President any single day when it comes to military matters.

Back to diplomacy, America was not founded on nation building and I believe that President Bush had uttered those same words when campaigning for his first election to the Presidency. 9/11 did happen and America wanted revenge. America wanted justice. We wanted blood for the thousands that died at the hands of monsters that happened to come from the Middle East. Label them terrorists or what ever title you want. We wanted an eye for an eye.

Now that the number of troops that have died in service to our nation has surpassed the number of dead on 9/11 do you think it is time for diplomacy with the nations harboring the terrorist?

Our so called American retribution in Iraq and Afghanistan has come to a decision of wills. American will be always stronger for our unity against terrorism but our strength is in our ability to know when diplomacy and talking to our enemies is far more fruitful. That is one message that this current administration will never comprehend.

Papamoka

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Military Service Recruits Down Amongst Blacks

First statement I have is why is it that this piece in the Washington Post is focusing on just “Blacks” also known as African Americans or simply Americans. What about the amount of White Anglo Saxon Americans not signing up for service in our nations military? What about those folks from the Asian parts of the world that just happens to be an American too? What about those pesky Canadians that dared to dream to be American or for that matter what some people would say settled for the lesser of two evils?

Serving in our nations military is a volunteer based academic and lifestyle choice. It is a choice that a person makes based on many levels of thought and current political atmosphere on what the current President calls something that could be a thousand year war is not very appetizing to the pallet for signing up to serve your nation in the military.

This is what the Washington Post has to say on this issue that I personally found very racist…

Number of Blacks Joining Military Down

By LOLITA C. BALDOR
The Associated PressMonday, June 25, 2007; 12:18 AM

WASHINGTON -- The number of blacks joining the military has plunged by more than one-third since the Afghanistan and Iraq wars began. Other job prospects are soaring and relatives of potential recruits increasingly are discouraging them from joining the armed services.
According to data obtained by The Associated Press, the decline covers all four military services for active duty recruits. The drop is even more dramatic when National Guard and Reserve recruiting is included. – Washington Post

Let us just assume for argument sake that any family, no race needed to be divulged, parents love their babies and those same parents learned the mistakes of past wars. Wars fought for true freedom can be justified but wars for political friend’s business profits are just wrong. How many parents would be willing to sign up their child for service knowing that the profits from that child’s service are bank rolling friends of politicians? Nope, not doing it here! This matter transcends race across America that is filled with just… Ummm Americans.
More from the WA PO…

The decline in black recruits overall has been offset partly by an increase in Hispanic recruits and those who classify themselves as other races or nationalities.

This category could include people who consider themselves Portuguese, or of other European descent that are not covered by the main categories of white, Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaskan, black or Hispanic. –Washington Post

(Snip-a-Roo)

At the same time, the military is opening the door to many recruits it has not welcomed in the past. That includes people who are a bit older; who score lower on aptitude tests; and who have medical conditions such as asthma or attention deficit disorders that can be controlled better now with medicine.

The Army, for example, increased its age limit for recruits from 35 to 42. – Washington Post

Somebody slap me up side the head and call me stupid! If African Americans are not signing up for military services then the standards for being in the service are lowered? What is the military saying about our friends in the African American community? Are they calling my friends in the African American community less than knowledgeable on the ways of the world when it comes to military service or complimenting them as an American?

I have to say that I encourage service in our military but I can not ask any parent to encourage belief in a war that our President has no plan to end other than opening his Presidential Library in Texas. Passing the buck is easy when you don’t care about the kids that will die for an imagined war with no clue as to how to offer a solution. Let the next guy or gal worry about it.

Then again, who are you voting for in 2008?

Papamoka

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