a letter from a sailor in the Gulf. proudly serving

A ship in the gulf via e-mail | 20030316 | Steph Barroni

[solo01]

well...i just thought id pop you an email...i have to be frank with you, i never thought id be where i am now the day i signed all those papers at the station....all those things you promised me...unlike what other were told....came true.by the time i actually get home, i will have made a full 6th month deployment. i think ive done a bit of growing up since then. i feel so old sometimes...so much more then i ever thought i did....the reality of all this amazes me. the next 24 hours are so critical, war.....and im here. im really scared, i am. more so then i thought....i attempted to meet this journey with ambition and adventurous thoughts...and i have, but i never thought of fear. i am in the heart of this political war...this liberation resolution. the thought of coming home, is as questioneable as iraqs intentions. i feel i have had all the patience that the US has had with Iraq the past 12 years, and now, i just want action...no excuses, no more talks of resolution... i want this war to happen, because its the only way i am coming home. this war is the only way to get Iraq on its knees, to get suddam on his knees...so the people who are fighting for it, fighting against it, and the people dying for it can get their answers. i dont know, maybe im thinking illogically, maybe im going crazy....all i know, is that i am deeply frustrated with the american people AND foreign people who are against this.....need we not forget what happened just a year and a half ago...has it been that long for people to forget....it hasnt for me...i think about it every day...i am here for it, because of it....everyday. i want to see my family, but i cant until the job is done....so when will they let us get to work? while our morale is still motivated enough to do so?....you know, the media was here today, where i stand watch...and it made me sick...there is no question what we are here for...what our prescence is to incinuate....this is not pretty, nor is it glamourous...it is our lives, it is our job, its what we do, and it shall and should not be exploited for anything more. this is not a story, its not entertainment...its painful, its tedious, and by god its hard....im sick of being exploited for sympathy, for a story...we are doing what we have to do..to get by, and not just that...to survive..to let this country survive and to protect everything weve worked so hard to get.........................these thoughts, and more...i think about everyday, i live with everyday...there is no time here...its all one long day. im sorry to vent like this on you with this email...i just thought maybe you might understand...i hope you understand. i beleive our intentions in the paths we chose to take are one of the same...........we,.....we, are making the history we always wanted to be apart of. i remember the day you sat me in your office after i had called to say i didnt want to go...i remember our conversation, and i will never forget it.....if there is one thing you always remember and take with you after your tour as a recruiter, remember that you forever changed my life, and that i am grateful for you, you saved me from going a direction that would have in the end, put me where i never wanted to be. please dont ever stop and question what it is you are doing, because if you did, i dont know where i would be right now, certainly not accomplishing what i am now.

stay motivated,

steph

[solo01]

this was a letter sent to me by a young girl i sent put into the United States Navy. lets hope all our young people are like this because she is what this country is about, those that serve with honor, put our patriots on the T.V. not the traitors and cowards.

[RaceBannon]

While off Iran in 1980, we were out of fear after the 1st month.

By that time, we were at fever pitch, and were ready to kill anything that moved.

If Jimmy Carter sent us in then, we would be in a much safer world, I believe.

[Jen]

PING.

All of you who support our troops can appreciate and understand the emotion in this letter from a young woman who recently enlisted in the Navy and is now headed to a combat zone.

[Jen]

...lets hope all our young people are like this because she is what this country is about, ...

Amen! Thanks for sharing her email.

Lord, please protect our men and women in uniform who are in harm's way and give them swift, complete victory.

[Rabid Dog]

I wish that letter would appear in every newspaper.

[Diver Dave]

Thanks for sharing this message, solo. And thank you for serving our country.

The antis decided to hold a protest outside our local Armed Forces Recruiting Station on Sat. A large group of patriots siezed the corner first and forced the antis to take their postition across the street. I took the time to go into the offices of the Army, Navy and Marines to thank those guys who had the weekend duty. Turned out they were thankful for us being there to show our support.

Salute!

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

Thank You AND the sailor who sent you this e-mail for your service to our country.

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

"Turned out they were thankful for us being there to show our support."

I am thankful as well!
Thank You Brother

[SAMWolf]

Thanks for the Ping, Jen. For every brain dead anti american, hate Busn, hate Capitalism protester there's a fine American like this sailor.

[risk]

there is no question what we are here for...

Please thank your daughter Steph for her selfless service on our behalf. That she's there for me, and I'm sitting here safe and sound at home is amazing.

[risk]

Thanks for the Ping, Jen. For every brain dead anti american, hate Busn, hate Capitalism protester there's a fine American like this sailor.

And each service member is worth 100,000 of us sitting safe and sound at home in patriot points.

[E.G.C.]

BTTT!!!!!!

[Mr. Silverback]

Solo, thanks for doing what you do, and tell Steph we love her and her shipmates and we await their homecoming--heap big victory party! My recruiter is one of the people I remember most fondly of all those I've known. She loved America and the Air Force desperately, she was very good at what she did, and had been an outstanding counter-espionage agent with OSI before her recruiting tour. Unfortunately, she died young--car accident. She always wanted me to be an officer (she said she would salute me once and that was it) and I never made it that far, but I think of her when we do our support demonstrations or freep the local Communists.

I can see why Steph is disgusted. I took a mess of flyers around town today. Only one was refused--the guy told me he supported the troops because he used to be one, but he wouldn't hang the flier because "it's a very complicated issue." I had an extremely rare moment of speechlessness, and was too disgusted to say more than "I was one, too, and some of us aren't doing nearly enough for them." What I should have said was "Those kids sitting in Kuwait don't see it that way. Whether we stand behind them or not is not a complicated issue." I'll be ready for the next idiot, if there is one.

[Trteamer]

Thanks for the letter from the troops. Please pass this back to them:

WE ARE STANDING BEHIND THEM ALL THE WAY. NOW AND WHEN THEY COME HOME!! There is a not so silent majority here in America who understands their sacrafices and devotion to duty. Our words cannot express our heartfelt thanks.

I and a group of patriotic Americans here in Colorado have been having weekly Support Our Troops Rallies for the last 16 months. We get in the face of the leftist peace-nik idiots. We get overwhelming support from the public EVERY WEEK. People blow their horns and give us the thumbs up. They give the peace-niks the one finger salute.

What the troops is doing is the right thing. We have a moral duty to mankind to wipe out this mini-me Hitler named Saddam. Keep the chin up, keep the morale high, WE ARE STANDING FIRM IN SUPPORT OF OUR TROOPS AND THEIR MISSION!!!
All the Best!

[OBone]

Receiving a letter like this must make you proud of the job you are doing. Keep up the good work and know that you have lots of support at home. God Bless

OB