Thank You, Soldiers

Tomorrow's Memorial Day. I feel the need to thank those of you who have served to defend America by choice, or by any method you ended up wearing a uniform.

We on the left tend to get a lot of things thrown at us, most of which we don't deserve. One of those things often thrown our way is that we hate the military, and worse, that we hate the soldiers who are sent to the far flung ends of the globe for various reasons, and in the name of our defense.

What those who make these charges against us expect people not to realize is that our fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles have served, and have died too. And in many cases, we have served. Why would we be against the military? That's our relatives, our friends and neighbors we supposedly hate.

That kind off stupid thinking is part-n-parcel to many conservatives who don't have enough capability to process nuance to understand that an American can be against the unjust war soldiers been sent to fight, but very supportive of the soldiers who have been sent to fight it.

While I never served in uniform, I lived on military bases most all of my life 'til I was about 16. My dad was a career pilot in the Air Force. He even volunteered for Viet Nam as his last tour of duty before he retired. So if there's someone who's seen or is sympathetic to the military point of view, it's me.

That doesn't make me think that I should support sending our soldiers to Iraq. However, I think that once we did, we should have provided them the proper armor to protect themselves. I hope this isn't too nuanced for you to understand, because it makes total sense to me.

And as we come upon this solemn holiday, I can't help but think of those who have come before, in justified and unjustified wars, who have had to give all, who have had to suffer the terror of being in a war zone and seeing others around them dying. I thank you one and all for your sacrifice.