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pro soldier or not, you should read this and get chills

AndyPav

Chimp
Sep 8, 2010
84
0
Columbus GA
Everyone likes body counts, so simple and neat. I’ll paraphrase Stalin; a single death
is a tragedy, a million a statistic. Almost 4,500 of my brothers and sisters
have died in Mesopotamia, over 100,000 Iraqis, most of them civilians. And
money, money matters. The total cost of the war has been tagged at around $700
billion dollars. Millions of Iraqis have been displaced from their homes,
thousands of American families have lost a son or daughter or father or wife,
thousands and thousands of veterans are “****ed-up” in the head . . . but these
numbers tell us nothing. What does it all mean?
I’m not qualified to speak for the nation, for the world, or for history; I can
only speak for myself. I flew out of the Middle East on Valentine’s Day 2009. I
haven’t been back since, but I took a part of it with me. Not a single day goes
by I don’t think about the people, experiences, and lessons I learned in that
ancient country. Did I have to go over there? Did I have to enlist myself in
the Army at nineteen and spend two years in a hostile combat zone? Absolutely
not, I made a choice.
I made a choice, a leap into the Army and into war-torn Iraq. I was young and
optimistic and strong. Our country made a choice, and by extension all of us.
America leaped into the war, proud and optimistic and strong. In the Army I
experienced triumph and struggle and regret. In Iraq our country experienced
triumph and struggle and regret. I have blood on my hands; my country has blood
on its hands. We’ve all made choices.
And we continue to make choices, I know that my experiences in the Army and Iraq
have me a stronger, better, wiser person; I have no apologies. America can
leave Iraq and feel sorry for itself. We can bitch and moan about “China” and
the “Economy” and sink helplessly into mediocrity; but it’s not inevitable,
that too is a choice. So why not make better choices, harder choices, choices
worthy of a country I fought for called “America.” No apologies.
I’m proud to have participated in America’s last imperialist war. Barring some
future surge of national strength or militaristic right-wing government, future
conflicts will be humanitarian in nature, us coming to the aid of an ally,
precision retaliatory strikes, or defense against foreign armies. We won’t have
the luxury of choice. War will be demanded of us, war will overtake us. In a
time of strength, which many now argue has past, the best defense was a good
offense. We’ll never know how many people may have suffered and died in our own
country were it not for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. If we stood by and
did nothing, how many more planes would have flown into our towers? What if
they just kept coming? How many of our own children would have died in their
homes not knowing life? Soldiers are strong and we know the game. We choose to
fight the enemies of America on their soil, on our terms, and if there isn’t
something to be admired in this I don’t know what is. We bleed and suffer and
live with the consequences of our actions for the rest of our lives so that the
rest of you can plead innocence and go on with “normal” life. We can’t hate you
for it, as long as you recognize what we’ve done.
The Iraq War is over, but don’t let it be forgotten. There’s a war still going on,
it’s in a country called Afghanistan, and it’s more important than anyone
realizes. Don’t forget about the soldiers who gave their lives, their limbs,
and their sanity to the cause. Don’t forget the dead Iraqis, good people who
only wanted to live their lives in peace with their families. Don’t forget how
strong of a people we are, how much we have to offer this world. Forget and you
admit defeat, forget and it was all for nothing.

Got this from an old friend...its out of a book she is going to read.

this was stolen from my good friend Chris Norton that i have deployed with and spent a lot of time with. we have been through a lot of **** together at work, and at home. he got this from a friend who got it from a book. i love how this is EXACTLY how i think of things but could never put it in words. thanks chris for sharing this
 

Silver

find me a tampon
Jul 20, 2002
10,840
1
Orange County, CA
We’ll never know how many people may have suffered and died in our own
country were it not for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.


This is just horrible horrible logic. Lisa/Homer rock level logic.

And what's this "we" stuff, white man?* I'm getting a little tired of the warmongers who used to call me a traitor and someone who hates America (although the second accusation is true, I have to admit) before the war talk about how "we" all have blood on our hands now. Fvck that.

*The Lone Ranger and Tonto are cornered in a canyon by a group of Indians that is advancing on them, and is certain to overrun them. The Lone Ranger looks at Tonto, and says, "Well, Tonto, my friend. It looks like we are surrounded and cannot escape." Tonto stares back coldly, and asks, "What do you mean 'we', white man?"
 

Transcend

My Nuts Are Flat
Apr 18, 2002
18,040
3
Towing the party line.
If we stood by and
did nothing, how many more planes would have flown into our towers? What if
they just kept coming? How many of our own children would have died in their
homes not knowing life? Soldiers are strong and we know the game. We choose to
fight the enemies of America on their soil, on our terms, and if there isn’t
something to be admired in this I don’t know what is.
Another deluded American who thinks that somehow the war in Iraq had anything, whatsoever, to do with a terrorist attack in NY.

Afghanistan, yes. Iraq, no.
 

blackohio

Generous jaywalker
Mar 12, 2009
2,773
122
Hellafornia. Formerly stumptown.
I've been against the wars from day one, I've been called names by war mongering McCarthyists and nationalists. In 20 years i'll still be against this war. To think this had anything to with anything but hegemony is naive.

Im thankful we have a volunteer army who is willing to sacrifice their lives for the republic but saddened by the trail of blood we leave in the attempt install democracies.
 

Pegboy

Turbo Monkey
Jan 20, 2003
1,139
27
New Hamp-sha
"We bleed and suffer and
live with the consequences of our actions for the rest of our lives so that the
rest of you can plead innocence and go on with “normal” life."

You can argue the "so that" part of this, and maybe it should read "while" but I, for one, respect this and the acknowledged accountability. It's a tough position to be put in as enlisted military and I'm glad it's one I'm not in. I refuse to disrespect those guys as a whole.
 

H8R

Cranky Pants
Nov 10, 2004
13,959
35
All of what was in that original post is a by-product of a soldier's experience in a war. None of that was the REASON we went to Iraq in the first place.

You know why we were there? Protecting and generating money for old white guys. Nothing more, nothing less.
 

RUFUS

e-douche of the year
Dec 1, 2006
3,480
1
Denver, CO
Ohhhhhh k.
(Not at your quote H8R, just his.)

I am "glad" that I now have a life long disability and other haunting life experiences because of this "war".

I am incredibly honestly glad that my brothers and sisters won't have to die in Iraq anymore, (hopefully). I also hope that we leave Afghanistan ASAP with no more bloodshed. I also hope that we did not pull out of Iraq just to send the same brothers and sisters that I fought side by side with, to Iran, Pakistan, etc.

This is one veteran that hopes that we can just finally bring all of our troops home and not have to meddle in others affairs. (Which will never happen, but it is a hope).

Not one veteran is happy to serve in any war post or present. It is something that we sign up for, knowing that someday, we will or might be on foreign soil to defend the freedoms of the American people, the 99 or 1%, it is something that we are proud to do and will give our lives for. We also have the same hopes that we never have to do this to the extent that we have done these past 10+ years, but we will.

I am proud that I made a historic impact in regards to the photos that I took during the war, but I am also more proud that I saved American military lives when I was an F16 crew chief while deployed to save my brothers and sisters in arms at the time that was most needed while my jet was in the air. I am disgusted as an American that we were unfortunately killing civilian Iraqis over the war that did not need to happen.

I thank all Americans that have lived and died for this country, I thank the men and women who have volunteered and died for this country, and I respect everyone that opposes the war(s) for their opinions. I am now a veteran for peace, and hope that everyone returns back home safely and never has to deploy again.
 

blackohio

Generous jaywalker
Mar 12, 2009
2,773
122
Hellafornia. Formerly stumptown.
Im sorry but following 9/11 there were waves of nationalistic youth signing up to kill brown people. Im of the opinion that nothing that happened on 9/11 was a surprise. They've been threatening us for decades following uncompromising support for Israel's land grab. The entirety of the region used the palestinian people as a means to justify their own evil. We used the same death and suffering to launch the most massive military attack of the last 1/2 century and in the process kill untold numbers of civilians.

A global imperialistic war machine used the death of thousands of it's world's citizens to line its coffers. Now we have left a country ravaged, it's citizens hurt and our own suffering. My little brother spent 16 months in Iraq during the height of attacks. He came home to see more guys in his company die due to self-medication and alcohol than died in Iraq. He came home to be fearful of intersections, crowded places and riding in cars.

David cross said it best, a war on terrorism is like a war on stupidity. You'll never say, "that's it we got them all."
 
...

Got this from an old friend...its out of a book she is going to read.

this was stolen from my good friend Chris Norton that i have deployed with and spent a lot of time with. we have been through a lot of **** together at work, and at home. he got this from a friend who got it from a book. i love how this is EXACTLY how i think of things but could never put it in words. thanks chris for sharing this
Actually, it seems to have been stolen from Andrew Goldsmith.
 

stevew

resident influencer
Sep 21, 2001
40,494
9,525
unless i had seen pictures of my uncle or my grandfather in the army when i was little....i never would have known they were in the army because they never felt the need to remind everyone that they had served.
 

JohnE

filthy rascist
May 13, 2005
13,430
1,949
Front Range, dude...
What Rufus and H8R said. I am proud to have served, for almost 20 years now. Just as any person who has worked honestly and with integrity has the right to be proud of their labors. But in the end, there is no such thing as a "good" war...there is no such thing as a worthy conflict. Young men and women die and are maiimed forever in order to secure the flow of oil that enriches few and enslaves many.
Smedley Butler had it right..."There are only two things we should fight for. One is the defense of our homes and the other is the Bill of Rights." He also said " War is a racket. It is the only one international in scope. It is the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives." This was a career Marine, who earned the Medal of Honor not once, but twice...
 

blackohio

Generous jaywalker
Mar 12, 2009
2,773
122
Hellafornia. Formerly stumptown.
I miss my grandfather, I miss his hard work, no judgement ethic. His understanding and acceptance of people is who i am today. He never much spoke about his time at war, and never let one moment of life slip past him. I grew up thinking I could never be the man he was. Here's to you grandfather.

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