Posted on 08/20/2021 5:41:51 AM PDT by uscga77
I was looking at the certificate and the flag my son gave me after one of his deployments that had him flying over Afghanistan. The mission we asked our men and women to support: Operation Enduring Freedom! (not just for us) It speaks of the "free skies of Afghanistan." Thanks to our government, not our soldiers, airman, and Marines, those skies, yes, that whole country is no longer free but a place that brutalizes and murders its' people and now threatens the world with terror. I thank our servicemen and women and their families for what they have given and continue to give. I expect that they will soon be asked to sacrifice even more due to foolish and heartless decisions. God bless our service men and women and all those that deployed. Those that presently govern us are not worthy of any salute they must render.
I’m more worried about our enduring freedom here. Unfortunately we’re enduring tyranny at the moment.
Hebrews 13:3 (NKJV) Remember the prisoners as if chained with them—those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also.
We should ensure our military personnel know that as a nation, we are appreciative of the excellent work they did on our behalf, at our national request, giving their blood, their health, and the best years of their lives if not their lives.
We divorce that from the questions about the mission, was it the right one, was it too long, should we have been there at all, etc. Those a are meaningless questions when it comes to our gratitude and respect for them.
We, as a nation asked them to go, and they, as our military went where we asked them and did the best job they could.
I preferred “Infinite Justice”.
I preferred “Infinite Justice”.
I’d support “Rock the Casbah.”
I am thankful that our people understand that now. Many did not when I served during (not in) Vietnam. I had friends who were spit on when they returned. I’m glad my son and others did not have to suffer that from their countrymen.
“...those skies, yes, that whole country is no longer free but a place that brutalizes and murders its’ people and now threatens the world with terror.”
Realistically that was always going to happen the minute the US left Afghanistan, whether after 20 years or 100. We all salute the sacrifices made by our brave men and women in uniform, but the Afghan people simply are not ready for a constitutional republic and will never be until they make the decision to uphold election results regardless of whether their favored party wins or not.
My father was career military Naval officer, and served through WWII, Korea, and Vietnam, I grew up as a military dependent during those years (eventually serving a tour myself) and came to despise the Left even as a kid.
But like many Americans, in those years immediately after Vietnam, even though I was a young teenager and young man, I didn’t speak out over the treatment of our military personnel. I didn’t stick up for them when I heard them slandered and observed poor treatment. I am as culpable as the next American.
But I determined never to allow, within my sphere of influence and especially never within my earshot, to let the slander of our military personnel go unopposed.
Never.
It is not that all military veterans or active duty are saints, patriots, or even competent workers. Human nature and events have proven that they are not. But they do merit our default respect, thanks, and gratitude until their actions show us they are not worthy of it. That should hold for all people, but especially for them.
We owe them extra by default.
We owe them, all of them, a debt of gratitude. Not scorn or shame. There is plenty of that to go around for those of our fellow Americans who do scorn or shame those who actually served.
I’m older now.
Seeing these young “kids”, men and women in foreign lands protecting, serving, makes me feel like I’m their parent.
I worry about them. I pray for them. My heart breaks at every injury or death.
I mourn with the parents that have lost their sons and daughters.
Then, those that survive with horrific injuries, lost limbs, head injuries, it saddens me and frustrates me all at the same time.
Thank you all for your service.
Be it today, yesterday or years and years ago.
God bless you all.
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