An Open Letter To Free Republic

Many of you who inhabit this virtual home of ours, know me by reputation, and a few personally. I am so proud to be counted among your ranks, and numbered among your company. We laugh, we cheer, we argue, we fight, we weep, we support, and we live, all in this place we call home. And all who do know me, know that my greatest wish is to serve this nation of ours in uniform.

That opportunity has arisen once again, as I return to Active Duty once more. This time, though, the mission is something unique to my experience, something I have never done in twenty-plus years of Active, Reserve and National Guard service. For as of next month, I shall become… a Recruiter.

Yes, you heard it. I shall shortly become one of those intrepid souls who venture out into the countryside, into the schools, the marketplaces, the state and county fairs, and anywhere else that citizens gather, to bring to them the virtues and distinctiveness of military life.

Now, I am going to confess something, here. I know that I shall be bringing to the job a very unique set of skills and experiences. I know that usually the older recruiters have an advantage over younger troops in the job, because they’ve seen and done so much more. That would be true, if this were a parallel universe.

This is a nation at war. A war that is not only on the battlefields, but also in the minds and hearts of its’ own citizens. Young folks today are technologically savvy, have better access to more data, and their innate distrust of adults has been hardened by focus-group-tested ads. In short, I shall be playing to a very hostile audience, which has been fed the bitter food of a poisoned ideology.

And this is where you, each of you, come in. As I begin this mission, I am recognizing that I must be better informed than anyone else, more than ever before, about more issues than I gave myself time to consider. And there is no better place to find these things, as I tell my soldiers who ask me, than Free Republic.

I need links, Web pages, facts and evidence, for the questions and sound bites that will be cast upon me. Young people have issues that matter to them: jobs, education, the “draft”, to name a few. I don’t doubt there are others; I need those, as well.

So, consider this an open appeal to my Pajama Patriot comrades. Help me to prepare for these upcoming debates. Arm me with fact and truth. Equip me with the data, debunked or confirmed, to do one sincere thing: to help me articulate what I might not otherwise say clearly, that their nation, this mightiest and best of nations, is worth their support and their service, and that there is no more honorable and noble title than United States Service Member.

Here's a good one for you, Sarge...straight from the horse's mouth:

John Kerry Explains War Funding Vote

WASHINGTON - On the eve of a foreign policy debate with President Bush, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry said in an interview that his explanation of why he voted in favor of additional funding for the war in Iraq before voting against it was "one of those inarticulate moments" in the campaign.

SNIP: "It was just a very inarticulate way of saying something and I had one of those inarticulate moments," Kerry said in an interview broadcast Wednesday on "Good Morning America" on ABC. "But it reflects the truth of the position ... I thought that the wealthiest people of America should share in that burden. It was a protest."

SNIP: "We should not have gone into Iraq knowing today what we know," Kerry told ABC. "Knowing there was no imminent threat to America, knowing there were no weapons of mass destruction, knowing there was no connection between 9/11 and Saddam Hussein, I would not have voted to support war."

I don't know about anyone else, but I sure as heck do not want an "inarticulate" President. Nor do I want a President who supported gutting our intelligence community to the point where information about Saddam and the location of WMDs was compromised. I do not want a President who cannot connect the dots between Saddam and giving aid, comfort and refuge to known terrorists.

But most especially, I do not want a President who refuses to have compassion for the Iraqi people regardless of the presence of WMDs.

Good luck on your new venture!

Here you go Old Sarge!

Ammo to stop the draft rumors.

Right from Kerry's site.

http://web.archive.org/web/20040210043828/www.johnkerry.com/issues/natservice/

National Service Plan Highlights

"Service for College" Initiative

As President, John Kerry will call on young people to help strengthen America's security and address unmet community needs. In return, he believes we should offer young Americans and their families the opportunity for a college education. A Kerry Administration will offer Americans the chance to earn the equivalent of their state's four-year public college tuition in exchange for two years of service. If service members decide not to go to college, their award can be used for job training or to help start a business. John Kerry will set a national goal of half a million young people serving their nation every year within ten years. President Bush promised to double AmeriCorps, but he broke that promise and let Congressional Republicans cut the program in half. John Kerry believes we need to think big and do better and get 500,000 young Americans serving the nation.

100,000 Older Americans in Service

As President, John Kerry will defend and strengthen vital programs such as Medicare and Social Security, but he also believes on calling on America's seniors to give their time, experience, and expertise to an America that needs their help. As President, John Kerry would create the Retired Not Tired Program. By mentoring students, helping the infirm, or working in their communities for 10 hours a week, members can earn up to $2,000 a year tax free that they can apply to an education grant for a family member or a member of their community. Alternatively, seniors will be able to use these funds to defray their own health care costs. John Kerry plans to engage 100,000 seniors a year in service in the next decade.

High School Service Requirement

As President, John Kerry will ensure that every high school student in America performs community service as a requirement for graduation. This service will be a rite of passage for our nation’s youth and will help foster a lifetime of service. States would design service programs that meet their community and educational needs. However, John Kerry does not believe in unfunded mandates. No state would be obligated to implement a service requirement if the federal government does not live up to its obligation to fund the program.

Creating a New Community Defense Service

John Kerry believes we must create a new Community Defense Service to be guided by our nation’s first responders. This service would be comprised of hundreds of thousands of Americans in neighborhoods all over the country. Service captains would be there to make sure our communities have the information they need and are ready to respond a crisis, complimenting but not supplanting the work done by police, fire fighters, and other first defenders. Volunteer Service Captains would receive training and education to assist their communities in the event of an attack. They would be trained to help identify local health professionals and experts in the area, provide information on local evacuation or quarantine plans, and stand ready to be of assistance to first defenders. This initiative would be funded out of the Department of Homeland Security and administered by local community leaders, including first responders. This 'surge' capacity would be in addition to the expanded numbers of first responders John Kerry has already proposed hiring.

A Summer of Service for Teenagers

Thirteen to seventeen year olds are too old for child care and too young for many summer jobs. John Kerry believes we should tap their energy and idealism through a summer of service learning. Supervised by AmeriCorps members, these young people could help out in nursing homes, clean up local areas, or teach seniors computer skills. In turn, they would receive a $500 grant to apply to their college or vocational educations down the road. Parents do not want to leave their children alone all summer but most cannot afford other means of care. The Summer of Service program would give parents peace of mind and at the same time build more responsible and dedicated young citizens and stronger, more vibrant communities.

A Rebirth of the Peace Corps

If there was ever a time that everyday people in developing countries around the world needed to see idealistic, hard-working Americans struggling to help them succeed, it is today, in the aftermath of September 11th. Peace Corps members are the greatest ambassadors of goodwill and foot soldiers for democratization this nation has - and we need more of them. John Kerry believes we need a major expansion of the Peace Corps for this new century and in this new era. In the White House, John Kerry will push to expand the Peace Corps to 25,000 members.

Recruiting More Americans to the Military

The highest form of service is military service. America's military is having trouble recruiting and is increasingly relying on the reserves for active duty. John Kerry believes we must change that. The complicated missions we face and technologies we use depend on it. In a Kerry Administration, no university that receives federal aid will be allowed to ban the ROTC from their campus, except for religious reasons. And the ROTC scholarship program will be adequately funded so that students can attend the college of their choice. John Kerry will also make modernizing our GI benefits a top priority, because no program has been more successful increasing educational opportunities for veterans while also providing an incentive for the best and brightest to make a career out of military

Paid for by John Kerry for President, Inc.

You'll need to counter their MTV indoctrination. Remember these kids have been taught that:

Republicans are mean, evil, racist
Democrats are kind, open minded
Corporations are Bad
Street Bums Good
Military Bad
UN Good
Tax breaks Bad
Socialism Good
Christians Bad
Kyoto Good
Talk Radio Bad
Class Warfare Good
Logic Bad
Emotion Good
War Bad
Appeasement Good
Heteros Bad
Gays Good
Patriotism Bad
Abortion Good

In short, they've been filled with sour cynical darkness. Kids are impossible to impress, but they are secretly yearning for some genuine discipline from adults who they can admire. They've been pandered to and lectured at for 18 years, and many are sick of it.

Old Sarge, this current crop of young Americans could very well contain the best ambassador/soldiers the world has ever seen. They are doing amazing things in Iraq/Afgan and YOU get to have a hand in that.

You are doing God's work, never forget that. The kids will surprise us all, and a coming generation of Republican control will retrain the US populace to show GRATITUDE to our troops. They will be cheered for their service, and YOU will be beaming with pride.

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