I just gotta rant.
Waving your flag that was made in China that you bought at WalMart, does NOT equate to supporting the troops.
Shouting down a war protestor doesn't mean you love this country more than the protestor.
Standing up while the Nathional Anthem plays on whatever particular sporting event you happen to be watching on your television doesn't mean you are in the same league as the man raising the flag at the current military installation each morning.
Supporting the troops means more than the occasional "attaboy" while you continue to overwater your lawn or fill up your gas guzzling SUV.
If you really care, join the boys in the fight...if you are too old, weak ot chickenshit to physically be in "the thick of the action" then visit a VA hospital and help the underpaid and ovrworked staff change blankets and bedpans. Instead of buying that extra round of dessert at the latest trendy restaurant, use that same money to make a donation to a charity that supports homeless veterans. If you really care, take an extra 10 minutes out of your day and write your congressman to improve the care our soldiers get when they get home. Make them fix up the VA hospitals and clinics and provide better menatl health care to the men and women who've seen combat.
If you really care, visit your local homeless shelter and find out how many veterans are there that aren't there because they are lazy, but because they didn't get the mental health support they needed when they got back from killing men, women and children in the name of truth, justice and the American way.
If you want to make a difference, write your congressman and urge them to REALLY look into the chemical warfare we engaged in ourselves during the Vietnam War.
Sorry, had to get that off my chest...I'm seeing way too many armchair patriots who provide little more than lip service on television, chat boards, at public speaking rallies and in newspaper editorials.
I'm also spending tomorrow at the VA clinic volunteering some time to help out and it gets depressing seeing the horrid conditions and treatment these Vets get while everyone is busy talking about supporting the troops but do very little beyond talking about it.
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