To the compassionate... A prayer wheel for our troops

I BELIEVE THAT MANY OF US CAN RELATE TO THE FOLLOWING


The average age of the military man/woman is 19 years.
He is a short haired, tight-muscled kid who, under normal
circumstances is considered by society as half man, half boy. Not yet
dry
behind the ears, not old enough to buy a beer, but old enough to die
for
his country.

He never really cared much for work and he would rather wax his own car
than
wash his father's; but he has never
collected unemployment either.

He's a recent High School graduate; he was probably an
average student, pursued some form of sport activities,
drives a ten year old jalopy, and has a steady girlfriend that either
broke
up with him when he left, or swears to be waiting when he returns from
half
a world away.

He listens to rock and roll or hip-hop or rap or jazz or
swing and 155mm Howitzers.

He is 10 or 15 pounds lighter now than when he was at home because he
is
working or fighting from before dawn to well after dusk.

He has trouble spelling, thus letter writing is a pain for him,
but he can field strip a rifle in 30 seconds and reassemble it in less
time
in the dark.

He can recite to you the nomenclature of a machine gun or
grenade launcher and use either one effectively if he must.

He digs foxholes and latrines and can apply first aid like a
professional.

He can march until he is told to stop or stop until he is told
to march.

He obeys orders instantly and without hesitation, but he is
not without spirit or individual dignity.

He is self-sufficient. He has two sets of fatigues: He washes one and
wears
the other. He keeps his canteens full and his feet dry.

He sometimes forgets to brush his teeth,but never to clean his rifle.

He can cook his own meals, mend his own clothes, and fix his own hurts.
If
you're thirsty, he'll share his water
with you; if you are hungry, his food.

He'll even split his ammunition with you in the midst of
battle when you run low.

He has learned to use his hands like weapons and weapons like they were
his
hands. He can save your life - or take it, because that is his job.

He will often do twice the work of a civilian, draw half
the pay and still find ironic humor in it all. He has seen
more suffering and death than he should have in his short lifetime.

He has stood atop mountains of dead bodies, and helped to create them.

He has wept in public and in private, for friends who have
fallen in combat and is unashamed.

He feels every note of the National Anthem vibrate through his body
while at
rigid attention, while tempering the burning desire to 'square-away'
those
around him who haven't bothered to stand, remove their hat, or even
stop
talking. In an odd twist, day in and day out, far from home, he defends
their right to be disrespectful.

Just as did his Father, Grandfather, and Great-grandfather, he is
paying the
price for our freedom.

Beardless or not, he is not a boy.

He is the American Fighting Man that has kept this country free for
over 200
years.

He has asked nothing in return, except our friendship and
understanding.

Remember him, always, for he has earned our respect and
admiration with his blood.

Prayer wheel for our military...please don't break it.
Please send this on after a short prayer.

Prayer Wheel

"Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them
as they protect us.

Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they
perform for us in our time of need. Amen."


This wasn't posted to disrespect anyone's feelings about the war itself....just in support of those brave men and women who are doing their duty for OUR country...My prayers are for them and THEIR safe return. God Bless them. http://www.gifs.net/animate/eagleflag.gif

I agree completly but he can also shoot an Iraqi irregular 50 times in under 3 seconds. Lets hear it for them boys!! Yeehaw!! Dont missunderstand me. I'm 100% pro war so long as those Iraqi lives are improved in some manner. I just don't like it when people on both sides of this war thing exploit "the troops" Truth be told I don't know a single one of them. Now I'm not saying to not respect them. No no no. But they are human. And humans are flawed. Sometimes to great degrees. Like that muslim military man who tossed grenades into his troops tents. I would be just as happy if he got shot as I would if an Iraqi Ba'ath party commander got waxed by our boys. What I'm saying is that not all of them should be judged the same. No doubt some of them deserve what they get. No doubt many don't. The ones that do GREAT. The ones who dont. That SUCKS. Just dont exploit them.

Can we do something about this guy? :rolleyes:

No doubt you would be the first to try.

I am not the Moderator for this end of the site. People are allowed their views, but we do try to keep it civil here. I'll let your Moderator know that there is a difference of opinion here. It will then be up to her to and the admins to see if his post is out of context.

Words that are truly sad. These are boys that were shoved into manhood. They are doing a great job, I say a little something for our troops every night. I don't agree with war...at all! But I do support the people who fight for the great life we have in the United States. God bless those out there ;)

The radio station I listen to does diary's of troops. Seeing that we (San Diego) are a military city we get a lot of responses. Here's is where you can go to hear them:

http://www.histar.com/mornings/

There's lots see and do look at pictures, listen to diaries and interviews and OH! don't forget to sign your name for the cyber march! The radio station usually does a 'human flag' at Qualcomm stadium, but b/c lots of people were rally-ing against the war, they decided to do a cyber march so we didn't have the police having to watch over another activity. Click Here (http://www.histar.com/mornings/troop.php) to sign your name to support the troops.
Pass that URL along then later go to the page and hit control and F at the same time and type in names of people you know to see if your friends signed too. At 4:30 on Saturday afternoon 91,188 people had signed. The first day I signed up - I was th 29th person to put my name up. They didn't expect this type of response, so the server is backed up. You won't see your name right away, so check back a few hours later or even the next day. Two hours after posting the link a woman based in Iraq called into the station and told the DJ's that her sister sent her the link. She also stated that it was a relief to see after hearing about all the rallies via satilite. She said she felt good knowing people are supporting them.

Seeing that I live in San Diego, we see and hear about families that lose their husbands, wives, children, brothers, sister...etc, etc. So please sign and say the prayer that Foxy posted. Listen to the diaries and the interviews...stuff we couln't possibly comprehend are posted there to know what it's like a day in the life of a soldier.

~Thanks Foxy for this thread :) ~

~EMCAD

Foxy - I got this same email earlier this week. It gave me cold chills then and again when I just read it. I have a 20 year old son so it really hits home for me. He isnt in the military, but some of his classmates are and a girl he used to date. They're just kids...

Anyways, I say a prayer for them each and every night - and sometimes in between. They're over there defending us, so I think the least I can do is pray for them. I feel pretty helpless as it is.

I also got another email kinda like this, but its an old man's view - I'll have to see if I can find it cause its really funny.

Thanks for posting this Foxy..


Southerngal

I most certainly did not copy a single word from ANY place into that post. AND I would like you to tell me exactly how it is out of context? My views of many things place me in an extreme minority. I do not contest this. But my brother was in the army and I have TONS of cute stories about our dear troops. They are by no means all innocent boys over there. But then....
"It is very nice to think
The world is filled with meat and drink,
With little children saying grace
In every christian kind of place."

But I have not forgoten the nature of mankind. It is never to be taken in regard with broad strokes, because that is how fine lines are painted over. But....
"Alas, regardless of their doom,
The little victems play!
No sense have they of ills to come,
Nor care beyond today."

~Fin

I would be just as happy if he got shot as I would if an Iraqi Ba'ath party commander got waxed by our boys

No bloodshed is good bloodshed, however it is apart of war. But to condone it and express the thoughts of happiness....I guess some of us do live in 'christian kind of place'. Like I said, we come here as a place of sanctuary, love and comfort and quotes as the ones above aren't really seen here....so to read them in a place such as here makes it out of context. However, I do thank you for posting your views....but as stated before it's how its worded.

So then it would be perfectly ok to create a thread that said as much? And if someones creates a thread I can not post an opposition view within that thread? Its not out of context(because the whole point of her post is ABOUT soldiers not love)
It just doesn't agree.

"I guess some of us do live in 'christian kind of place'"

This I do agree with.

Foxyeyes, what a beautiful thread! Count me in! I'm going to print that as well as forward it to all my cyber buddies. Thank you for posting it. I don't care what those ym and yw are like at home...they are SOLDIERS over there, and they are risking their lives for a just cause. Their LIVES! I don't have to know them personally to care about them. They are human beings who might not get to come home. They are brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, best friends, loved by family members and friends at home. Who cares if they're not saints? They've RISKED THEIR YOUNG LIVES! They deserve every respect.

Thank You Foxy, my son is 19, sitting here in the family room, all warm and safe, he is not in the military, he works and goes to college, but........if he has to he would go in the service.
I KNOW how ALL those moms feel with their children in the military. I just pray every day for safe return, and I cry along with thhe families. Those boys and girls out there, our men and women, are doing their job, for freedom.
Those are our boys. Americas children. I will never disrespect those fine young men and women.
Thanks for the great post.

Foxey, thanks for sharing that with us. I would be a nervous wreck if my son were over there. That has got to be hel_ for the parents of these young people.

You know originalname is right. In past wars there have been some horrible things that happened that were done by a minority of soldiers on our side. But even though I wished this war had never started, I think there will be a big difference. The troops have been told that it is their mission to overthrow the regime, not hurt the Iraqi people. That has been stressed unlike any other war I know about.

I pray for their safety and peace in Iraq. This I would think is something we all can agree on.

I'm not even refering to past wars. The general mentality of our armed forces, particularly the army, is a violent and fatalistic one. This is good for the army. This is what they want. The military has no use for nice sweet kids. They're not going to help matters when they need go and kill people. This is why the idea of a draft is so far fetched now days its crazy. Things would need to be REAL bad for them to do this because the quality of soldier goes down dramatically.

The most violent and fatalistic people in the army are, according to military standard, is the infantry. When people volunteer for the infantry they volunteer for 1 of 2 things. To die or to kill. This is why the military refers to them as "Bulletstoppers" This is also why they had, for my brothers 2 years with the 82 airborn at Fort Bragg, instituted an 82 day requirment for nobody to die(during peace time mind you) for a free 3 day pass. That was their reward. They wanted them boys to "calm down" because they were crazy and would do crazy things . The 2 years he was with them they got the pass once. And this is just in the 82 airborn. I'm not even getting into the sniper that snapped and set himself up a "kill box" and started shooting his fellow soldiers. Killing 7 and wounding 21. He went for the Colonel first, whom he had a personal grudge against, and then went for "the boys". Oh and before you feel bad for them, they LAUGHED AT THE COLONEL WHEN THE SNIPER SHOT AT HIM FIRST. They laughed. Then one of them got shot and hell broke lose.
The army needs these people. They can not be the best in the world without them. But I don't know them from Adam.

Originally posted by originalname
I just don't like it when people on both sides of this war thing exploit "the troops" Now I'm not saying to not respect them. No no no. But they are human. And humans are flawed. Sometimes to great degrees. . What I'm saying is that not all of them should be judged the same. No doubt some of them deserve what they get. No doubt many don't. The ones that do GREAT. The ones who dont. That SUCKS. Just dont exploit them.


Umm excuse me? Who said anything about exploiting the troops? WHY may I ask are you trying to start things on this thread?...I wasn't asking anyones opinion.... it was to ask a simple PRAYER for our men and women that are serving OUR country...

Yes ,I understand that there are a few fanatical's in the military but this isn't what THIS thread was about!!!..PLEASE if you do not care for our military then just stop reading this thread and allow others to establish something positive and hopeful here..

There are ENOUGH threads on here about the war and complaining about it...go find one of them! This thread is about HOPE and PRAYERS not about u throwing cynical remarks about the men and women that you admittedly know nothing about and know none of them personally!


To Everyone else: I am glad you appreciated the prayer it was nothing to start another arguement over....just pray for our troops and hope they make it home safe.

Thanks EMCAD80 for posting that link...whether any of us agrees with war or not...those are our young men and women that are over there risking their lives whether they chose the frontline or not....is not the question. I for one am hoping they all make it home safe and the war ends soon.
http://www.funbun.com/imgs/page_imgs/fpt/aa0403.gif
http://www.funbun.com/imgs/page_imgs/fbangels/angel14.gif

Peace, Hope, Love and Harmony
are what Angels are all about.
No one needs Angels more right
now than our soldiers overseas!
http://www.funbun.com/imgs/page_imgs/fbangels/angel14.gif

Your welcome...did you get to hear any of the Soldiers Diary's. Heart warming and very sad all at once. I cried at the last one. Maybe it's the way the read them.

Hope you signed the Cyber March! It gives our troop hope...there isn't a better feeling.

:cool: thank you foxy.

I do thoses thing so poeple i care about (I.E> ya'll ) dont have to.