NEWS: Support the Troops, DAMMIT!

POLITICS: Support the Troops, DAMMIT!

Morale is a big deal in the Army. If morale is down, people do substandard work, they aren’t as motivated and things simply don’t go as smoothly. That’s why the Army spends millions of dollars on morale boosting programs like MWR (Morale Welfare and Recreation) and BOSS (Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers). Despite all that effort, things like hate mail can be a real morale killer.

Everyone likes to feel appreciated. There are many organizations out there that support the troops by sending them crap. That’s great. I have no problem with free stuff. However, a box of Triscuits and baby wipes very much pales in comparison to a genuine smile or a silently mouthed thank you received for nothing other than being in uniform.

It was December so I got to fly home for Christmas. I was in full dress uniform and it was immensely uncomfortable. I get on the plane and the flight attendant bumps me to first class. “Well, hot diggity dog! First class.” I think, “That’s what the fuck I’m talking about!” At first it was just really cool to be in the cushy chair and being given a wine list, then one of the passengers comes up to me and says, “This is my first time flying since 9/11 and I really feel safer because you’re here.” That makes you feel good.

Hate mail? Not so much.

I received some hate mail on MySpace today.

In it, was the following:

Apparently, this person wants me out of Iraq.

Personally, I don’t give a shit whether random MySpace jerkbag supports the war. Or the troops. Or me. If you pay taxes to the American government you are supporting my paycheck which is really all the support I need from you. The rest of it is nice, but if I don’t have it I will still do my job and do it well.

That said, I very easily dismissed Random MySpace Jerkbag as a bored piece of dog crap who needed to feel important for once in his life and moved on with my own. However when I, in passing, told one of my comrades about MySpace Jerkbag and his ill-formatted piece of correspondence, he was surprisingly saddened by the lack of support.

He said, “That sucks, man. What a shitty thing to do. I get those sometimes too. I joined to serve my country and I can’t understand why people who benefit from what I do could be such assholes.” Incredulous, I replied: “You joined to serve your country? Sorry, man. I most definitely cannot identify with your sentiment. I joined for the free stuff.”

I didn’t join the Army because I was compelled to be a part of some greater good. I joined for the free stuff. Some people join because they need to get away from wherever they are. Some people see it as a legitimate and respectable way to better themselves. Some people join because they need a steady paycheck. Some people join because they have a terminally ill child and they can’t afford the healthcare. Some people join only because that’s what Dad did.

People don’t realize this when they think of the troops, they see us as this huge oppressive singular force; the way they see the government. They equate the idea of the bureaucracy at the top with the troops and they aren’t the same. That’s like blaming the bagger at Wal-Mart for putting the mom and pop shop down the street out of business.

Foremost, what people don’t realize about the troops (or the war for that matter) is that the politics of the situation go out the window once the boots hit the ground. Then it’s about the guy next to you. It’s about making sure he gets to see his new baby. It’s about making sure that the newly engaged becomes the newly wed. It’s about a making sure that he gets the chance to blow all his deployment money on that Audi that he really doesn’t need. It’s about making sure that he comes home.

As I write this piece, I’m tracking a combat operation on the screen in front of me with bated breath. The road they are on hasn’t seen a route clearance team since early this morning and there’s been a large amount of enemy activity in the area in the past week. So far everything has been quiet but something could happen to them at any time. They know I’m here watching them, ready to send help the second they ask for it. That’s all the support they need right now.

We do what we are told because that’s our job. It’s not about what you think. It not about what I think. Its not about what the media thinks. It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter because despite what anyone thinks; we will still execute. Just don’t be an asshole.

Oh, yeah. Free stuff is cool, too.

A very honest and open article; I like it. Take care of yourself and the same to your peers.

so true.
i don't understand equating the troops with the administration that sent them into war.

I support the troops, so I give a damn how every one of them is deployed.

Good article, very well said.


and thank you

Thanks for your service, bro.

Fuckin A! Wanna support the troops? Ask Wendy.

"Consider the source"

Probably one of the most valuable lessons I learned in childhood. I just ignore stuff like that which ends up getting routed to me.

You have my utmost respect, although I can't honestly believe how anyone in this country could NOT support the troops. Like you said, your job is to do what you're told.

There's a bumper sticker I wish I'd see more frequently than the yellow ribbons. It says "It's their job not to question. It's our job to do it for them".

I will always support the men and women who choose to serve, and I will always question how they are being used.

Well I have to admit I am torn about the people who continue to enlist in light of the fiasco that is Iraq. A part of me wishes people would stop enlisting and thus force the Bush administration to re-institute the DRAFT. My feeling is that if we had mandatory service for ALL with no exceptions our fearless leaders would be less inclined to get us into so many messes. As for the ones serving they have nothing but my complete respect.

Thank you for writing an article that articulates what most people who have never been in the military/war just don't get.
And what did the douche bag who wrote "get out of Iraq" think you were going to do? Go AWOL and hitch hike out of Iraq? Or maybe you could convince your commander that you really can't stay any more and you need to redeploy.
He should be sending messages to politicians, not service members


I hate idiots.

Excellent article!
Thanks to you and everyone else in uniform.

I joined because I was too scared to go to college. My ex husband joined to get off parole. He's been to Iraq twice. My best friend joined because she needed money, I am so glad you pointed out that we are not a blob of people who have the same ideals and morals and political stance.

Good perspective, and not one that gets much attention. I hope more people read this.

While I agree that the MySpace jerk's letter was certainly in poor taste, perhaps this is what he was taking issue with:

I don't feel any benefit from what's happening in Iraq. In fact, I feel less safe as a result of the military being there. I don't fault the soldiers for the poor decisions made by their politician overseers, but it can sometimes be hard for some to divorce the policies of the armed forces from the individuals who make up those armed forces. And in truth, at some level, deciding to join some branch of the military is an implicit endorsement of that organization. Sure, you joined for the free stuff, but agreed to do whatever the military told you to do as part of your enlistment in order to get that free stuff. There are other ways to get free things that don't involve cooperating in dubious military adventures.

I can work for a company that does business with, say, the North Korean government, because all I'm interested in is getting my paycheck even though I'm against the North Korean government's oppression of its people. That's all well and good, but I don't have to work for that company, there are other ways to get paychecks. So my decision to work for them as the means by which I get paid on some level validates what the company is doing. It's certainly not my fault that the corporate execs at the top of the ladder made bad and potentially unethical decisions, but I applied to work there knowing full well what the company was doing, so aren't I at least a little bit complicit in it?

Thanks dude. Some people can see the difference and some cannot.

Amazing article.
I think the war is complete bullshit but I don't let that stop me from mailing my buddy over there a couple of cartons when he asks for them.

+1

I might not be from America, and thus not in much of a position to try and make a difference myself, but I do wish more people thought like this.

Wanting to end the war in Iraq and supporting our troops aren't mutually exclusive ideas. The troops aren't the problem - it's the administration that has them there.

Good luck, soldiers. Stay strong, and stay safe!

SODIERS ARE THERE ON ORDERS!!! I dont understand why that is so hard to understand. As if my husband woke up one day and thought "gee, I think I'll spend the next three years away from my wife, watch half of my friends die, and come home with sever PTSD only to be told I need to suck it up!" "Yeah that's a good idea"

I refuse to believe that any sane soldier WANTS to be in a war. I certainly didn't support the events of 9-11 but I'm not going to send hate mail to the firemen, and police officers helping clean up the aftermath "get out of that rubble, get out of that rubble!"

If you dont support the war, Good.
If you dont support our current administration, Great.
But if you dont support people, then I'm sure there are many other countries that dont care about people either that you might feel more at home in.

Excellent article.....I joined for the college money. That was 14 years ago.

As a former soldier, and at the risk of sounding cliché to anyone familiar with the army, this was very well stated and pretty fuckin' hoooah. Thank you for reminding people that soldiers are people, too.

It is this kind of mindlessness that fosters more mindlessness.

When people voluntarily give up thinking and abdicate personal responsibility for their choices, and willfully just follow along, the slide to the bottom will be swift.

Yes, the "team" and "fraternal" loyalties of the military mind are old and well known. Every dictator in history has exploited the loyalty of good men for their own ends. These were good traits in good men and women, most of whom died because of it.

I appreciate your service, OhSoOrdinary, and I'm thankful that you're doing your job to the best of your ability. I have no doubt that there are many boots there that will come home expressly because you do your mission so well.

However, your apparent utter failure at grasping the mission of humanity makes me sick...

Come home safely. I'll be happy to buy you a beer and let you call me a "jerkbag" and a "bored piece of dog crap" to my face (and I'm not even the one who wrote you).