Is It Possible?

[Ranger Bill]

Is it possible to support the troops but not the war?

More and more people say that they support the troops, but not the war. I feel that they are self-serving, misguided, shallow in moral character and just not able to realize the impossibility of doing one without the other. They live a lie, demoralizing the troops they claim to support while providing encouragement and comfort to those trying to kill our troops.

Their naïve “intellectualâ€

[Nomad]

That was brilliant!

[mikelogics]

Peace never comes cheap. That's one thing we learned.

It is only after you have fought hard for peace when you can begin to understand its value

[Chiron]

Well said! I agree 100%.

[Darksaga]

Great post.

[Silverback]

MOVED FROM NEWS DUMP

[VAK]

Sadly, I have this argument on the floor of Congress all the time...

Wanna come next time???

[keepsmilin]

I actually just had a conversation (argument) with my mom about that exact thing. We were driving to get gifts and I noticed a vehicle plastered with those ribbon magnets that seem to be a must have accessory to every vehicle. I noticed they had the standard "I support our troops" and then next to it there was one that said "PEACE" right next to it. I turned and said "What a load of crap. You cannot support the soldiers without supporting the cause for which they fight, its impossible." She of course disagreed (she voted for Kerry, naturally) and went on to "support" her claim.

I said in a kind of angered tone "What kind of message does that send!? 'We don't support what your doing but we support you!' Thats bullshit."

That pretty much ended the argument on the spot, but I was still pissed.

Go up to a professional football player and say "Hey I think your great but that whole football thing is really fuckin stupid." I don't think you'd be on his Christmas card list. Soldiers are the same way but more so.

People saying "I support our troops but I don't support the war" has always pissed me off, even before I enlisted.

What are we to do with our Liberal Moms???. I know how you feel! My mother constantly contradicts herself... she is still making excuses for Clinton...Her views on things have no cohesive/collective focus... She complains about the war, supports our soldiers, thinks that Conservatives are all Wealthy SOB's (even though 2 of her children fall in that category and corporate America has offered them a much better Standard of Living), blames the Federal Gov on everything including all the problems in the School systems (supported primarily by State Funds)... The most frustrating thing is that she will believe "everything" that CNN spoon feeds her without opening her eyes to other views..
------------- I'll get off my soap... I don't think we will ever change our having lived through or shortly after the Depression mothers that are still in love with John Kennedy and Roosevelt (Roosevelt did some great things for sure like put the Welfare cases to work.. and I think JFK would be a conservative in today's world)...
----------------------------
BTW - the whining Liberals can't truly support our Soldiers if they don't support the WAR effort and the CAUSE to support Freedom...

-KS

[Mom in Texas]

Hey now, ALL moms are NOT liberal!

[keepsmilin]

Hey now, ALL moms are NOT liberal!

Oh No... The sexy and very cool Ranger Moms do NOT fall into this Category!



-KS

[Dando175]

It seems to me like a lot of people who "support the troops but not the war" tend to be extremely detached from the reality of what it is like to be a modern-day soldier. Their superficial impression of soldiers makes them very susceptible to viewing soldiers as some sort of oppressed minority.

Basically, they see soldiers as a bunch of poor saps who had no viable future so they got yanked up by Uncle Sam. "Go to war or go to jail" pretty aptly summarizes what many of these folks assume were our motivations for signing up. Sadly, few of them could even consider that patriotism, honor, (and an understanding that some causes are actually more important than *ONESELF* and are worth fighting for) ever entered our minds when we joined up. It makes me sick to my stomach how superficially some closed-minded (though truly bright) intellectuals in academia see this. To quote the words of a J-Crew-and-wool-scarf-wearing college student who debated with me while I was rallying in support of the GWOT, "soldiers are beneath street sweepers." [This individual happens to be a current Rhodes Scholar- supposedly one of our nation's brightest and most upstanding people.]

So if you hear someone say they support the troops but not the war, try picking at their brains to subtly find out if they see soldiers as honorable warriors with the sense of duty to go into harm's way for what they truly believe is a worthy cause, or a poor and oppressed minority without the "intellect" to realize they're being used as cannon fodder. I think you'll find that most of them will fall into the latter category and the rest will try to dodge the question. And let us know how it goes because I'm really curious.

[Nomad]

Excellent post also Dando!

[Jim]

It seems to me like a lot of people who "support the troops but not the war" tend to be extremely detached from the reality of what it is like to be a modern-day soldier. Their superficial impression of soldiers makes them very susceptible to viewing soldiers as some sort of oppressed minority.

Basically, they see soldiers as a bunch of poor saps who had no viable future so they got yanked up by Uncle Sam. "Go to war or go to jail" pretty aptly summarizes what many of these folks assume were our motivations for signing up. Sadly, few of them could even consider that patriotism, honor, (and an understanding that some causes are actually more important than *ONESELF* and are worth fighting for) ever entered our minds when we joined up. It makes me sick to my stomach how superficially some closed-minded (though truly bright) intellectuals in academia see this. To quote the words of a J-Crew-and-wool-scarf-wearing college student who debated with me while I was rallying in support of the GWOT, "soldiers are beneath street sweepers." [This individual happens to be a current Rhodes Scholar- supposedly one of our nation's brightest and most upstanding people.]

So if you hear someone say they support the troops but not the war, try picking at their brains to subtly find out if they see soldiers as honorable warriors with the sense of duty to go into harm's way for what they truly believe is a worthy cause, or a poor and oppressed minority without the "intellect" to realize they're being used as cannon fodder. I think you'll find that most of them will fall into the latter category and the rest will try to dodge the question. And let us know how it goes because I'm really curious.

And that, sir, is the great irony. Those who enjoy the privilege of being a citizen of this great nation are least willing to pay the price of freedom. On the other hand, I predict that in time, the young studs dodging rounds in Iraq or Afganistan today will be members of Congress in 10 - 15 years. Most of them realize the price of freedom -- something I cannot say of your future Rhodes scholar.

[CRA907]

I was at a football game and a buddy of mine saw my "Support the Troops" wristband, and said something like, "What is this crap?â€