Join the Army , See the World, Fight and Die at the Whim of Politicians

Sec. of Defense, Robert Gates has been traveling around the country, making speeches about the challenges facing the country's defense. In particular he talks about the state of the military and the difficulties which face a nation with an all volunteer army. In this speech he speaks of the apparent detachment most Americans have for the Afghanistan "War" and the fact that they see it as a war for someone else to fight. In other words, let the professional Army fight it. It isn't our problem.

Daily, we see various groups and individuals drumming up support for our troops. We are asked to send them toiletries and other necessities. We are told all of the things that they need. It seems to be a constant thing and it is usually coming from someone connected with the military in some way, usually through a relative or friend. I have always wondered why the military does not provide these things for them. Is it because they are a professional organization and expected to provide their own necessities? They are trained to become a professional killer, just as a person in the private sector is trained to do their job. The only thing the only thing provided is the equipment to do your job, just as in the private sector.

Why then, is the public "detached?" Why is is harder to recruit and keep people in this professional army? Finally, soldiers and the American public have seen the folly of joining the army at this point in history. Vietnam was a nightmare and the last administration used the military for a preemptive invasion of a non-threatening country, possibly because of a personal grudge. Thousands of unsuspecting young men and women were killed and maimed because a misguided president chose to send them to into harm's way unnecessarily. That same president mismanaged the Afghan invasion, and we are now bogged down in a country that no country has ever conquered. His successor has been unable to focus a strategy that will either take Bin Laden or disengage our country from a very potential failure.

I would never think of joining the U.S. military at this time. If the extremist Tea/Republican Party were to come back into power in its present form, God only knows what will happen to our foreign policy. These people are openly hostile toward most of the world and would not hesitate to use the military, particularly against Muslim countries. I do not think it is out of the question that they would support an Israeli attack on Iran and a takeover of the Palestinian territories. I expect they would also militarily support such an effort, which could finally blow the lid off the Middle East. The young people of the United States would do well to stay away from the military at this time. Take a wait and see attitude. It is no wonder that the American public is "detached."

Democrats, Independents, Republicans Who Think for Yourselves - Vote in this Election!!

A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her altitude and spotted a man in a boat below. She shouted to him, Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."

The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot air balloon, approximately 30 feet above ground elevation of 2,346 feet above sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude.

She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be an Obama Democrat." "I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct. But I have no idea what to do with your information, and I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me."

The man smiled and responded, "You must be a Republican."

"I am," replied the balloonist. "How did you know?" "Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are -- or where you are going. You've risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but somehow, now it's my fault."

COMMENT:You are hearing from political pundits that the party of President Obama, the Democratic Party, will not do well during the upcoming election. It's an easy call based on historical fact (the party in power always loses seats). Let's change that!

It's clear that the Republican Party has no interest in helping the President fix the economy or anything else and if they regain power the country will be in far worse shape. We all know that the withering attacks that this President faces daily are often racially motivated. In spite of how the media couches their words we know that white (tea party) America does not believe he should be President under any circumstances.

The President has done some good things and he deserves our support. This could be the most important midterm of our generation. Encourage your family and friends to participate; the party that got us into this mess is trying to compound what they did. Do not allow this to happen. If the Democrats lose control of the Congress, the Republicans will not help Obama to govern, thus he becomes a lame duck and the country will be headed over the cliff.

REMEMBER POLLS DO NOT VOTE, PEOPLE DO.

PLEASE VOTE DEMOCRATIC IN THIS ELECTION!!

The Pat Answer

This article from Yahoo explains how, in the writer's opinion, the U.S. is losing its influence in the world. It is a reasonable explanation of how a country with everything going for it has become too fat and lazy to keep up in the world. Other, once third world nations, have worked hard to overcome their deficiencies and are making their own way in the world. In areas where the U.S. once controlled and exploited the natural resources of these countries, they are now taking control of their own destinies. Their children have taken advantage of the educational opportunities the U.S. offers to gain the vital knowledge required to take their countries to the next level, while, Americans have sat on their laurels and allowed science and math in secondary education to take a back seat to sports and leisurely studies.

Yet, looking at the responses to this article by readers, there are several instances of the pat answer from those who look no farther than the end of their noses for the answer. It is the movement away from God. Lack of prayer in the schools is another reason given. Is it, really? Look around you. Churches abound in this country. New ones crop up every day. Some churches claim thousands of members. Entire radio and TV networks are devoted to religion. The majority of my Facebook friends almost daily make some reference to religion in their posts. Some of them incessantly, almost fanatically.

God is the general reason given for most negative happenings by so many. They rarely look for the real reason. Carelessness in the case of accidental deaths. Poor investment or management of money for fiscal losses. Do not blame God. Blame the real reason. In the case of this country's fall from international power, blame the American people. We are lazy. We want high wages for minimum effort. We condone the waste of our natural resources. We elect officials that start preemptive wars that break the country's coffers and force the borrowing of money from our direct competitors in world power. Finally, there is the fact that the last 100 years of bad foreign policy have made enemies of the third world, which now races to put us in our place. There is plenty of blame to be shared. God did not do it. We have done it to ourselves. As Pogo said, "we have met the enemy and he is us."