tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post117008514531140421..comments2023-10-10T08:02:18.073-04:00Comments on Rationally Speaking: Support our troops?Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-62657989659663334352007-12-26T18:46:00.000-05:002007-12-26T18:46:00.000-05:00After reading these postings, it seems that the Am...After reading these postings, it seems that the Americans of 2007-08 are more supportive of the terrorists than they are of our own troops.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-7472160598920529752007-09-13T11:27:00.000-04:002007-09-13T11:27:00.000-04:00Thanks for the nice post!Thanks for the nice post!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-80896300247166905032007-07-23T23:58:00.000-04:002007-07-23T23:58:00.000-04:00you are all ungratfull for what the troops do for ...you are all ungratfull for what the troops do for you. its because of their sacrifice that you have the ability to write youre stupid ideas on a web page. its people like you that arnt worth fighting for. what we are doing is a great thing in Iraq. i would gladly fight for our country and support our president and for that matter i will support any president we elect, republican or not.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-22130078515659832332007-04-12T17:41:00.000-04:002007-04-12T17:41:00.000-04:00It's hard to imagine a more idiotic comment than t...It's hard to imagine a more idiotic comment than this one.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09099460671669064269noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-76707465244102078382007-04-12T12:12:00.000-04:002007-04-12T12:12:00.000-04:00Support Our Troops- If you don't want to stand beh...Support Our Troops- If you don't want to stand behind our deployed soldiers then you are more then welcome to stand in front of them.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-71294847466112558422007-03-19T19:42:00.000-04:002007-03-19T19:42:00.000-04:00The voice of today's America:"Not only do I not su...The voice of today's America:<BR/>"Not only do I not support them, I do actually wish them harm--and their families too! When they return, NO SERVICES. Why should we waste our precious tax dollars on spent meat when they could go to worthwhile endeavors-- such as CEO compensation"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-58323585157472018232007-02-14T16:07:00.000-05:002007-02-14T16:07:00.000-05:00I agree with milkywayinhabitant. I joined before ...I agree with milkywayinhabitant. I joined before the current administration. I was not opposed to some of the deployments I was sent on. However, just like milkywayinhabitant, I felt I had no power to decline orders to go to the Middle East for what I felt was an unjust war. This absolutely enraged me. The other comment I have is about incentives to join the military. Although it is correct that the mlitary uses incentives,this argument underestimates the draw of health insurance,a fare wage, and a "way out" for a young person with a family in states and areas with few chances for a decent life. One is often willing to give up their freedom for a chronically sick spouse or child. It doesn't sound much like "volunteering" in those cases, does it?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-63129773603986383152007-02-13T10:37:00.000-05:002007-02-13T10:37:00.000-05:00General Dynamics supports the troops<A HREF="http://2164th.blogspot.com/2007/02/smoking-gun_13.html" REL="nofollow"> General Dynamics supports the troops</A>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170559303883756642007-02-03T22:21:00.000-05:002007-02-03T22:21:00.000-05:00milkywayinhabitant,thanks for your thoughtful post...milkywayinhabitant,<BR/><BR/>thanks for your thoughtful post. When I was in Italy I did indeed take the conscientious objector route. Of course, there was no war at that time, but I did have to do 20 months (instead of 12) of civil duty, at the same (essentially non-exhistent) pay of a soldier, but with no shelter and food provided by the government.<BR/><BR/>But I do see your points, of course, as I hope you see mine.<BR/><BR/>As for the Hovind debate, I'm proud of having managed to keep it civil. Have you heard he went to prison for tax evasion? I guess his version of Christian morality doesn't extend to giving to Caesar what is of Caesar... :)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09099460671669064269noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170557624933639342007-02-03T21:53:00.000-05:002007-02-03T21:53:00.000-05:00MassimoI see.The lack of support for military pers...Massimo<BR/>I see.<BR/><BR/>The lack of support for military personal has nothing whatsoever to do with atheist beliefs? I think it may for some people. We either wage war for freedom in what are (somewhat) Christian nations because we believe that God is sovereign, or He is not and Man is.<BR/><BR/>I am afraid that it is one of those "either or" situations.<BR/><BR/>calAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170553646991350652007-02-03T20:47:00.000-05:002007-02-03T20:47:00.000-05:00I don't remember deleting any rant, I delete only ...I don't remember deleting any rant, I delete only things that are pointlessly offensive, a waste of space because completely off topic (and I mean, completely!) or advertisements.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09099460671669064269noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170542189813907922007-02-03T17:36:00.000-05:002007-02-03T17:36:00.000-05:00Massimo, you made my teeny weeny rant about humani...Massimo, <BR/><BR/>you made my teeny weeny rant about humanism disappear.<BR/>what's up with that? <BR/><BR/>caliiaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170531487053972982007-02-03T14:38:00.000-05:002007-02-03T14:38:00.000-05:00I understand your opinion of the troops but I don'...I understand your opinion of the troops but I don't entirely agree with it. I joined the Marine Corps before we invaded Iraq and whether or not you're aware of it, troops are bound to a contract typically ranging from four to six years in length. There is a large number of us troops who do oppose the war but what choice do we have? Do we take the "conscientious objector" route and risk endless unemployment and constant insults upon discharge? I spent a whole year in Iraq and my motivation during the course of it was serving next to other Marines in my unit. I would've felt morally unfulfilled, or selfish, had I stayed back here in the U.S. while they all went forward and endured something they too don't agree with. Also, all conscientious objectors make their claim on religious grounds (to my knowledge). Well I'm an atheist so if I did choose to not go to Iraq, it would be much more difficult to successfully get discharged by claiming to be a conscientious objector.<BR/><BR/>On a side note, I'm listening to your 2002 debate with Kent Hovind on the Infidel Guy's radio show (posted over at Richard Dawkins' website) and found my way over here. I don't know how you kept the discussion civil...it's hard for me to listen to that guy. Good job. I'm especially annoyed by his constant labeling of evolution being a religion.silkydayinhabitathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09891342965420719138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170478408851035892007-02-02T23:53:00.000-05:002007-02-02T23:53:00.000-05:00I agree entirely. You cant support the people who ...I agree entirely. You cant support the people who willingly fight a war you are against! Ive said this to family and friends so many times, but its apparently a very complicated opinion to hold because people seem to really struggle with it..<BR/><BR/>The mercenary factor isnt considered most of the time I think. Noice!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04998444176665198185noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170437526492270502007-02-02T12:32:00.000-05:002007-02-02T12:32:00.000-05:00A few years ago around the time that the invasion ...A few years ago around the time that the invasion of Iraq had begun, I met a couple of guys that were in the army. I expressed my gratitude to them for putting their lives on the line for the country, and said I felt like I should be doing something more to support them.<BR/><BR/>The soldier I was speaking to said, without hesitation, you support us by being educated ... by speaking out here, by voting.<BR/><BR/>He didn't tell me <I>what</I> to say, or <I>who</I> to vote for. Essentially, he told me to speak my conscience, and that act itself was supporting the troops. <BR/><BR/>Everyone who defines supporting the troops as acceding to their own opinion is engaging in a form of hubris. It is the hubris of thinking so highly of one's own opinion as to believe that no one can think otherwise and still have noble motivations.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170212587436388362007-01-30T22:03:00.000-05:002007-01-30T22:03:00.000-05:00thanks, John. :)I no longer have spell-check beca...thanks, John. :)<BR/><BR/>I no longer have spell-check because we (I) was not updating virus protection. My hubs usual solution is to wipe everything out and start from (almost) )zero until he figured out where the problem was.<BR/><BR/>I think several of my computers had this affliction.<BR/><BR/>that'll teach me. ;)<BR/>calAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170212277702633012007-01-30T21:57:00.000-05:002007-01-30T21:57:00.000-05:00I don't support the troops and I never have in thi...I don't support the troops and I never have in this particular military action against a non-aggressive target. <BR/><BR/>If no one agreed to fight, there would be no war.<BR/><BR/>Before someone points out the obvious, yes there are instances where military action is justified. This wasn't one of them and everyone in charge knew it going in.<BR/><BR/>Of course, my career (20+ years, ret'd) Army brother rips me when I say things like that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170209739696056122007-01-30T21:15:00.000-05:002007-01-30T21:15:00.000-05:00"and who are you, btw? "Sorry. Guess I forgot to s..."and who are you, btw? "<BR/><BR/>Sorry. Guess I forgot to sign my name.<BR/><BR/>JohnAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170207454847469682007-01-30T20:37:00.000-05:002007-01-30T20:37:00.000-05:00"Not pating attention " "Guess I shouldn't be t..."Not pating attention "<BR/><BR/> "Guess I shouldn't be too quick to criticize."<BR/><BR/>and who are you, btw? <BR/><BR/>It's just hard to know who one should criticize for criticizing. But, of course, I have had no spell check as of the last week, so I can't really say anything to anyone. <BR/><BR/>I mean, I wasn't even sure I could actually spell anymore. ;)<BR/><BR/>calAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170206488292539952007-01-30T20:21:00.000-05:002007-01-30T20:21:00.000-05:00"Not pating attention "Guess I shouldn't be too qu..."Not pating attention "<BR/><BR/>Guess I shouldn't be too quick to criticize.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170204355362162972007-01-30T19:45:00.000-05:002007-01-30T19:45:00.000-05:00"People who complain that this is a new usage have..."People who complain that this is a new usage haven’t been paying close attention to the language for at least 200 years – and probably much longer."<BR/><BR/>Bad dennis! Not pating attention for 200 years!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170202920779698442007-01-30T19:22:00.000-05:002007-01-30T19:22:00.000-05:00Actually, Dennis, the use of "troop" to mean "sold...Actually, Dennis, the use of "troop" to mean "soldier" dates from at least the Civil War. As Tim Sager of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says:<BR/><BR/>(http://tinyurl.com/22436v)<BR/><BR/>We get the same complaint from time to time.I always send the offended reader the following quotes from Eisenhower and Winfield Scott:<BR/><BR/>Eisenhower: “People of Western Europe: A landing was made this morning on the coast of France by troops of the Allied Expeditionary Force. ...”<BR/><BR/>“Nothing is easy in war. Mistakes are always paid for in casualties, and troops are quick to sense any blunder made by their commanders.”<BR/><BR/>In neither of these examples is Ike referring to units of cavalry commanded by a captain and equivalent to a company of foot or a battery of artillery.<BR/><BR/>The usage, of course, predates Eisenhower. It was very common during the American Civil War and in histories of that war written by Union and Confederate veterans. For example, in 1861 Yankee Gen. Winfield Scott famously said of Robert E. Lee that “Colonel Lee would be worth fifty thousand troops to our side."<BR/><BR/>Scott was no spring chicken when the Civil War began and was probably as resistant to neologisms as he was to new military tactics.<BR/><BR/>People who complain that this is a new usage haven’t been paying close attention to the language for at least 200 years – and probably much longer.The Ridger, FCDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01538111197270563075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170177797810264202007-01-30T12:23:00.000-05:002007-01-30T12:23:00.000-05:00"But Bush has turned the whole thing on it's head ..."But Bush has turned the whole thing on it's head - using our military as an belligerent offensive weapon against a nothing (militarily) country, that, although led by and onerous dictator was not a threat to anyone and certainly not the US."<BR/><BR/>Dennis <BR/><BR/>many feel tend to feel that yours is an elitist view. When one really see's who is at the forefront of protesting, their reasons just don't add up. (Note the following article after my comments.)<BR/><BR/>btw,My natural dad is vet too. Unfortunaely he's been tad mixed up for well over 30 years. (was trapped in an overturned tank with other dead soldiers for several days to a week...and so on.) <BR/><BR/>Jan. 30, 2007 11:28 | Updated Jan. 30, 2007 15:55<BR/><BR/>Koch's Comments: Celebrity protestors<BR/>By ED KOCH<BR/><BR/><BR/>The old "celebrity protester" crowd is back. There they were in Washington, on the mall: Jane Fonda, formerly known as "Hanoi Jane," has now become "Baghdad Jane;" Danny Glover, and Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins, husband and wife, exhorting the crowd against President Bush and the war in Iraq. The crowd's signs read, "No War Is A Just War." Not even the war against Hitler in World War II? Another sign read, "Bush = Evildoer." Really?<BR/><BR/>The president believes, as I do, that the Islamic terrorists want to kill us, and already have at the World Trade Center and elsewhere, and if they are not stopped, they will seek to conquer and threaten the entire world into submission. President Bush, who fights Islamic terrorism, an "evildoer?"<BR/><BR/>The crowd was large - in the tens of thousands - and their rhetoric denounced the US. The public officials who were elected opponents of the war, senators and congressmen, did not appear, with the exception of Dennis Kucinich and John Conyers, both of whom addressed the crowd. Kucinich is running again for president, and John Conyers is now Chairman of the Judiciary Committee and threatened impeachment proceedings against Bush when he was the senior ranking Democratic member. He will now have a chance to do that.<BR/><BR/>These people and their counterparts do have the capacity to bring down the government and prevent the president from being effective in pursuing the war. They were successful against President Johnson, destroying his reputation and sending him into oblivion. It is not far fetched that they can do the same to the idea and those who believe it that Western civilization is at great risk.<BR/><BR/>Pre-WWII in Great Britain, some in British universities - the leaders of the next generation - said they would not serve in the military forces. Many said they were pacifists, others supporters of the apparently invincible Nazis. Even the then-King Edward VIII before he abdicated to marry his love, Wallis Simpson, conveyed by his statements and his Nazi salute caught by a photographer his support for Hitler.<BR/><BR/>In America, there was the rise of the America First movement led by the national hero, Charles Lindbergh. Nevertheless, when the chips were down and the Nazis began their conquest of the West, the British stood up and so did the Americans. The French collapsed quickly.<BR/><BR/>Will the spirit and willingness to die for the concept of freedom rise again? I don't know, and I worry. We in America are leading la dolce vita. We've never had it so good. Sure, there are plenty of problems, but unemployment is down to 4.5 percent. More than half of America's adults are in the stock market and it is rising. We are a country of wealth and prosperity, even if not fairly distributed. We love life. Our enemies, the Islamic terrorists, love death and martyrdom. Remember what Zarqawi, an al-Qaida leader in Iraq, said, "Killing the infidels is our religion, slaughtering them is our religion, until they convert to Islam or pay us tribute."<BR/><BR/>Remember their reward when they carry out that command? They are immediately lifted to heaven at the side of God, and are provided the services of 72 virgins. Can we in the Judeo-Christian Western world compete? Our reward is not so clearly spelled out by our biblical teachings and in such detail. We know there is a heaven and a hell, and heaven is far better.<BR/><BR/>Islamic terrorists are willing to wait the years needed to overcome our forces. They know they have the support of those Americans, British, Spaniards and French and others who wish to surrender to the terrorists' threats and get out of Iraq. Because of the threats, some countries have never gone into Iraq." <BR/><BR/>cont. here:<BR/><BR/>http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite<BR/>?cid=1167467846933&pagename=JPost%2FJP<BR/>Article%2FShowFull <BR/><BR/>calAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170123276111331102007-01-29T21:14:00.000-05:002007-01-29T21:14:00.000-05:00Putting part of the blame for the war on the "troo...Putting part of the blame for the war on the "troops". Your logic never seems to amaze me. <BR/><BR/>Good thing you wrote a post on how tired you are of hearing about people supporting the troops. You wanna get that off your chest.<BR/><BR/>Republician hawks, he he , is that from your last post? Why didn't you say Democratic doves instead of just democrat?Jim Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16928807367473160898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15005476.post-1170113135307734582007-01-29T18:25:00.000-05:002007-01-29T18:25:00.000-05:00I can understand where MP is coming from even thou...I can understand where MP is coming from even though I don't totally agree with it. <BR/><BR/>I would bet that most of the RA (Regular Army) guys are in the service for good reasons, are patriotic and want to defend this country. I know that's how I felt in my military days (about 13 years worth). That was in the Vietnam era and although I disagreed with that war as much as I do this one, I would have gone had I rec'd orders to do so. (The stupidity of youth)Those orders never came and as the old military line goes, "never, never volunteer! <BR/><BR/>The Nat'l Guard Guys have a slightly different take, as they expect their mission to be within the US in the event we were invaded, natural disasters etc. Of course you can't discount the perks that are promised either.<BR/><BR/>But Bush has turned the whole thing on it's head - using our military as an belligerent offensive weapon against a nothing (militarily) country, that, although led by and onerous dictator was not a threat to anyone and certainly not the US. (How many more nasty dictators are there out there and are we going to hammer them too? I doubt it - NO OIL) Defeating the Iraqi military was a push over, trying to fix the mess he made has been the disaster. He has USED all of our military very badly. He has, in reality, used the entire country very badly.<BR/><BR/>I want to see every man and women come back in one piece regardless of their position on the war. The people I don't give a damn about are the ones who thought up this whole disasterous mess and those who supported them in the beginning and continue to support them.<BR/><BR/>One other little piddling point. Does anyone know what a troop is? A troop is a military unit (originally a cavalry unit)generally consisting of two platoons. That is somewhere between 50 and 70 men depending on the mission of the platoons. That means that we should have something like 7,800,000 soldiers in Iraq and that Bushie wants to send 1,290,000 more. Every time I hear the term troop when referring to an individual soldier I wonder just how much of the rest of the speakers information is off base.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com